Official Site of The State of New Jersey

Know Your Zones: The spotted lanternfly is quarantined in several Eastern states, so drivers who travel through these areas need to be extra careful that they aren't moving this pest. Check with your state agricultural department for quarantine information.

If your employment or business operates in or near an infested area, or if you receive shipments from an infested area:

• Check Your Vehicle: Before leaving a parking lot or work site, inspect vehicles for spotted lanternfly egg or insects. Check doors, sides, bumpers, wheel wells, grills, and roofs.  If found, destroy any eggs or insects you find.
• Inspect Items Being Moved: Check shipping containers, propane tanks, pallets and other items being stored outdoors before they are moved off-site. Inspect incoming goods for egg masses and insects. 
• Park with Windows Closed: The spotted lanternfly and its nymphs can enter vehicles unsuspectedly. When parked, make sure to keep windows closed. If possible, try to park 15 feet away from trees.
• Remove and Destroy Pests: Crush nymphs and adult insects. Scrape egg masses into a plastic bag and place in trash.
• Remove Host Trees: Spotted lanternflies prefer the ailanthus tree, also known as “Tree of Heaven.” Try to remove trees from the business property to avoid attracting spotted lanternfly.
• Comply with Permitting: Businesses must have permits to move equipment and goods. Visit https://extension.psu.edu/slf-permit-training-nj for more information about permits. 

 

To stop the spread of spotted lanternfly (SLF), the New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA) has issued a quarantine for all of New Jersey. This quarantine requires all businesses and organizations moving within or from the quarantine zone in the course of their work to obtain permits issued by NJDA.

Regulated articles include but not limited to:

• Any living life stage of SLF.
• Landscaping, remodeling and construction waste.
• Firewood of any species.
• Packing materials (e.g., wood pallets, crates, boxes)
• All plants and plant parts including logs, stumps and any tree parts.
• Outdoor and household articles like RVs, boats, lawn mowers, chairs, grills, tarps, tile, stone, deck boards, and trucks or other vehicles not stored indoors.
• Anything!

New Jersey Spotted Lanternfly Quarantine For General Audience

NJ Spotted Lanternfly Quarantine Rules – see Subchapter 10 to Quarantines regulations

New Jersey Residence Checklist (English)

New Jersey Residence Checklist (Spanish)

As mentioned above, SLF utilizes a large range of plant hosts. Home gardeners have reported SLF feeding on their backyard plants, including cucumbers, basil, rose, peony, Russian sage, and more. In most cases, SLF will only feed on these herbaceous plants for a short period of time (less than one week). In some cases, damage on these plants has also been reported. Whether or not damage occurs appears to be largely dependent on the density of the population and other plants in proximity. We highly recommend that you monitor for SLF on a regular basis to try to predict where SLF is likely to feed and move in a given area. If there are other highly desirable hosts nearby, we recommend you focus monitoring and potential treatment on those plants. Monitoring can be done through visual inspection.

Predacious insects and spiders, parasitoids, and fungi have all been found attacking SLF in the United States. These are generalist natural enemies and they are unlikely to greatly reduce the population levels of SLF. More research is being done to understand if we can better utilize these already existing natural enemies for SLF management. Currently, there is no commercially available biological control option available for SLF. Research is ongoing to find potential parasitoids or pathogens that can be released into the United States as a long-term control solution.

Ovicides

Based on studies done in 2018 and 2019, our results suggest some insecticides have ovicidal action against SLF eggs. All studies were done on intact egg masses (with covering) between February and April. Although many synthetic insecticides were tested against SLF eggs, the most effective products tested were paraffinic and/or mineral oils such as JMS Stylet oil, Damoil and Lesco Horticultural oil, commonly used in fruit systems as insecticides to control soft bodied insects. Many of these oils are also available to residents at local garden centers. When oils were applied at a solution of at least 3 percent, they were effective in killing up to 75 percent of treated eggs. One of the most important parts to getting effective control is to make sure you have good coverage and apply the oil solution directly to the egg masses. The only plant-based oil, soybean oil, had similar control of SLF egg masses when applied at a 50% concentration. Oils, when applied at the correct time and with good coverage, can offer some control of egg masses and have very little non-target effects. The use of oils provides not only a safe, environmentally friendly option but also provides control to some egg masses that are not accessible for physical removal or smashing. However, for egg masses that are within a reachable area, smashing or scraping the egg masses will provide greater efficacy than the ovicides currently available.

Contact Insecticides

Many commonly available insecticides that kill insects on contact are effective against SLF. Efficacy, residual activity, and toxicity vary between products. We recommend trying the least toxic options first. Toxicity to mammals can be determined from the LD50 values found on the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for each product, and toxicity to birds, fish, and bees can be found in the table below. If systemic insecticides are not used, frequent use of contact insecticides may be needed to control SLF for the entire season. Always apply insecticides after bloom is finished to help protect natural enemies and pollinators.

*Some trees are sensitive to horticultural spray oil.
Note: This is a guide for when to use management tactics to manage SLF. Read each label carefully and apply according to the label directions. These are our current best recommendations for management tactic timing, but not all combinations of active ingredient, timing, application methods, and tree species have been tested.

Systemic Insecticides

Although we previously recommended certain systemic incesticides, we no longer recommend them as they are now banned from agricultural uses. If a Spotted Lanternfly systemic insecticide becomes available and is known to be effective, we will post it to our website. 

 

 

 

 

Tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus altissima), is an invasive and rapidly growing deciduous tree, now common to urban, agricultural, and forested areas. Spotted lanternfly is particularly attracted to Tree of Heaven. Learn how to identify and manage the tree and why it's important to the fight against spotted lanternfly.

• Factsheet: Tree of Heaven Identification and Management
• Video: Tree of Heaven: Accurate Identification
• Video: Controlling Tree of Heaven: Why it Matters

DIY Spotted Lanternfly Circle Trap

If a staff member from the NJDA requests to survey an outdoor area, they will be wearing easily identifiable attire as shown below. Staff members will always carry State or Federal identification on them. The survey staff will only request to survey outdoor areas where the Spotted Lanternfly have been reported.