Spotted lanternflies can quickly overwhelm a yard in late summer. Hundreds of these invasive pests often gather on tree trunks, branches, and leaves, feeding on plant sap and leaving behind a messy, sticky residue.
While a sudden influx might make you think expensive chemical treatments or professional exterminators are required, effective management tools are likely already in your home. With simple household items and properly shielded traps, you can clear out lanternfly clusters quickly and safely.
Here's my DIY approach that'll help you protect your trees and reclaim your outdoor space.
Kill them on contact with soapy water
Spotted lanternflies have a protective outer coating that repels water. Soap breaks through this barrier, suffocating them on contact.
For an incredibly cheap spot-treatment, mix one tablespoon of liquid dish soap with water in a spray bottle. Then simply spray this mixture directly onto lanternflies clustered on hard surfaces like tree trunks, decks, or patio furniture, and they will drop within minutes.
This method works on both nymphs and adults. However, avoid spraying household dish soap directly onto delicate plant leaves, as the harsh degreasers can strip away a leaf's protective coating and cause severe foliage burn.
For treating infestations directly on plant foliage, swap the dish soap for a commercially formulated insecticidal soap, which kills the pests without risking your landscape. For the best results, spray in the early morning or late evening when the insects are less active.
Catch nymphs with a protected tape barrier
Because spotted lanternfly nymphs cannot fly, they must walk up tree trunks to reach the fresh leaves at the top. You can ambush them on their journey using standard duct tape or heavy-duty painter's tape wrapped backward (sticky side facing out) around the trunk.
Wrapping the tree tightly about four feet off the ground creates an unpassable barrier, and watching the invasive pests accumulate can be deeply satisfying.
However, never leave sticky tape exposed to the open air. Exposed tape acts like flypaper and will trap non-target wildlife like songbirds, squirrels, and butterflies, causing fatal injuries. To make this hack completely safe, you must install a wire mesh shield.
Simply take a piece of netting and pin it loosely over the tape like a skirt. This allows the tiny lanternflies to crawl underneath and get trapped while keeping larger, innocent animals entirely safe. Check the tape every few days and replace it when it is full.
Prevent next years' spotted lanternfly invasion
As summer ends and the adult population fades, you can prepare for the next phase of the fight.
Spotted lanternflies lay their eggs in the fall and early winter, leaving behind distinctive grey or brown mud-like masses on tree bark, bricks, outdoor furniture, and other rough surfaces. Each of these inconspicuous clumps contains anywhere from 30 to 50 eggs.
To destroy them, use a plastic card or a putty knife to scrape the masses firmly off the surface. You must scrape them directly into a container filled with rubbing alcohol or hand sanitiser to kill them completely. Simply scraping them onto the ground will not stop them from hatching in the spring.
Taking this quick step in the fall prevents hundreds of new lanternflies from emerging next year.
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