Long Island Homeowners Face a Growing Threat: The Spotted Lanternfly Invasion Demands Immediate Tree Protection Action

The spotted lanternfly (SLF) has established a significant presence across Long Island, with Nassau and Suffolk counties now included in New York State’s protective zones. As we move through 2024, this invasive pest continues to expand its range throughout New York State, having been confirmed in all New York City boroughs and Long Island. For Long Island property owners, understanding effective tree treatment options and prevention strategies has become essential for protecting valuable landscape investments.

Understanding the Spotted Lanternfly Threat on Long Island

The spotted lanternfly is an invasive insect pest from Asia that primarily feeds on trees of heaven but can also feed on a wide variety of plants such as grapevine, hops, maple, walnut, and fruit trees. This invasive species has a harmful appetite for more than 70 types of plants, causing damage to fruit and woody trees, and when it feeds, it excretes a sticky, sugary fluid that promotes sooty mold growth.

Long Island residents should be particularly concerned because the spotted lanternfly is known to suck the sap out of 70 different species of plants and excrete honeydew where it lands, with grapevines being one of its favorites, which is problematic given New York State’s $300 million wine industry. Apples, hops and maple trees can also be negatively affected, and while North Fork wineries have been preparing for the bugs’ arrival, the insects have yet to gain a foothold on the wine trail.

Professional Tree Treatment Options for 2024

When it comes to protecting your trees from spotted lanternfly damage, professional treatment options fall into two main categories: systemic and contact insecticides. Systemic insecticides are absorbed into the roots or bark of the tree and move through the tree, and when SLF feed on a tree that contains a toxic level of systemic insecticide, they will die, providing weeks or months of protection for important trees.

Systemic Treatment Methods

The most commonly used methods for applying systemic insecticides to trees are soil drench, where you pour a solution containing the insecticide into the soil around the base of the tree, and soil injection. Bark spray, trunk injections, or root drenches are used to get systemic insecticides into trees.

To control adult SLF in landscapes, systemic insecticides containing either dinotefuran or imidacloprid are suggested only for high-value trees and in areas with high SLF populations. Preliminary results show insecticides with the active ingredients dinotefuran, imidacloprid, carbaryl, and bifenthrin are effective at controlling the spotted lanternfly.

Application Timing and Effectiveness

Systemic treatments can be applied any time of year where the tree is active and not dormant, with the chemical insecticide staying active for approximately 9-12 months, though early spring applications are preferred to allow the chemical to fully infiltrate the tree for maximum treatment effectiveness during the whole spotted lanternfly season.

Prevention Strategies for Long Island Properties

Prevention remains the most cost-effective approach to spotted lanternfly management. Property owners should keep their eyes peeled for egg masses during fall and make sure to destroy them through the spring, while removing the tree of heaven, an invasive non-native plant, is a top priority when it comes to proactive ways to eradicate the lanternfly.

Egg Mass Destruction

Newly laid egg masses holding 30–50 eggs resemble wet, gray putty before turning dull and brown, mirroring a smear of cracked mud, and these 1-inch long egg masses can be seen in fall, winter, and spring on a variety of smooth surfaces. Scraping SLF egg masses and placing them permanently in an alcohol solution is another approach to reduce SLF damage, and when oils are applied at a solution of at least 3 percent, they are effective in killing up to 75 percent of treated eggs, with good coverage being essential.

Host Plant Management

If possible and practical, experts recommend removal of tree-of-heaven as it is invasive in the U.S. and has other negative environmental effects, and when removing TOH, you will have best results if you use an herbicide to kill the root system. In Pennsylvania quarantine zones, work has been done using tree of heaven as trap trees, where female trees are identified and removed to limit spread, while male trees are evaluated and thinned to a manageable number that allows remaining trees to be treated with systemic insecticide so any spotted lanternfly attracted to the trees will feed, ingest the insecticide, and die.

Why Professional Tree Services Are Essential

Since spotted lanternflies rarely cause damage to landscape trees, treatment is not necessary for the health of the tree; but if they become a nuisance, insecticides can be used. However, proper application requires expertise and specialized equipment. Generally, systemic insecticides applied by trunk injection, trunk spray, and soil drench are considered to have a reduced impact on natural enemies compared to broad-spectrum foliar-applied insecticides.

Professional Tree Services companies like Green Light Tree Services bring essential expertise to spotted lanternfly management. As the premier provider of tree services on Long Island, providing residential and commercial clients with top-quality tree removal and maintenance solutions, their team of highly skilled and experienced professionals includes certified arborists with the knowledge and experience to handle any tree-related challenge.

The Green Light Tree Services Approach

Green Light Tree Services prioritizes safety in everything they do, taking extra precautions to ensure property protection throughout the process, while offering competitive pricing and free estimates, using only the highest-quality equipment and materials, and providing exceptional customer service with customized solutions. They take a holistic approach to tree care, offering everything from tree pruning and removal to professional arborist services, with experts ready to step in with tailored solutions for both residential and commercial tree care.

Looking Ahead: 2024 Management Strategies

The insects will hatch from May through June, living as adults from July through December, with egg laying taking place from September through November. This predictable lifecycle allows for strategic treatment timing. Officials from the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets urge the public to kill spotted lanternflies immediately when spotted, check vehicles and equipment before traveling, use traps to control them at home, and report sightings, as early detection and continued survey is key to slowing the spread.

For Long Island property owners, the spotted lanternfly represents a manageable but serious threat to valuable trees and landscapes. With proper professional treatment, strategic prevention measures, and ongoing monitoring, homeowners can protect their investments while contributing to broader management efforts. Companies like Green Light Tree Services, which have been serving Long Island for years, understand how coastal storms affect local tree species and what it takes to keep properties safe, making them invaluable partners in the fight against this invasive pest.

The key to success lies in early action, professional expertise, and comprehensive management strategies that address both immediate threats and long-term prevention. As we move through 2024, Long Island residents who take proactive steps now will be best positioned to protect their trees and maintain their property values against this persistent invasive threat.