One garden plant may offer help against spotted lanternflies

SUNDERLAND, MA (WGGB/WSHM) -- Massachusetts officials are asking residents to help manage spotted lanternflies during egg-laying season as the invasive pest has been reported in more than 145 cities and towns across the state.

Spotted lanternflies feed on sap and leave behind a sticky liquid called honeydew. The substance can coat cars, decks, and native plants and the film can keep plants from absorbing sunlight.

“This is not a pest that can reasonably be eradicated,” said Jennifer Forman Orth, an environmental biologist at the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources. “And so we’re going to have to learn how to manage it the best we can and to deal with it when we can.”

Milkweed, a plant known for helping monarch butterflies, can also affect spotted lanternflies. The plant’s milky sap is poisonous to the invasive pests, according to Dan Ziomek, manager of Sugarloaf Gardens.

“So, lanternflies are an introduced species, so they don’t know that the milky sap that comes out of milkweeds is toxic to them,” Ziomek said. “And because of that, when they go and feed on it, they take in this toxic sap and it kills them. Our native pests have learned that they can’t feed on milkweeds because it will kill them.”

Residents can plant milkweed as a natural trap for about $15 to $30, according to the report. The plants can help native insects while stopping spotted lanternflies.

Officials also recommend removing trees of heaven from yards as soon as possible. Spotted lanternflies are drawn to the invasive trees, and removing them can help native insects thrive.