Can an Exteminator Get Rid of Lantern Flies

If you've noticed a striking red-and-black winged insect clinging to your trees, grapevines, or the side of your house lately, there's a good chance you've had an unwanted encounter with the spotted lanternfly. And if you live in Southern Maryland — St. Mary's County, Calvert County, Charles County — that encounter is becoming less of a surprise and more of an inevitability.

The spotted lanternfly is not just a nuisance. It's an agricultural and ecological threat that has been spreading aggressively across the Mid-Atlantic, and Maryland is squarely in its path.

Here's what you need to know — and why calling Southern MD Boys Pest Control is one of the smartest moves you can make for your property this season.

What Is the Spotted Lanternfly?

The spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) is an invasive planthopper native to China, India, and Vietnam. It was first detected in the United States in Pennsylvania in 2014 and has since spread into more than a dozen states, including Maryland.

Despite its almost beautiful appearance — gray wings with black spots, a flash of vivid red underneath — the spotted lanternfly is devastating to the plants it feeds on. It uses a piercing mouthpart to tap into the vascular tissue of trees and plants, sucking out the sap and weakening the host over time.

Left unchecked, a lanternfly infestation doesn't just damage one tree. It spreads. Rapidly.

What Does the Spotted Lanternfly Damage?

The spotted lanternfly's preferred host is the tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima), an invasive tree that is extremely common throughout Maryland roadsides and wooded edges. The problem is that lanternflies don't stop there.

They also feed heavily on:

• Grapevines
• Apple, peach, and cherry trees
• Hops
• Maples, oaks, walnuts, and willows
• Ornamental trees and shrubs
  
  

For Southern Maryland homeowners with fruit trees, vegetable gardens, or mature hardwoods on their property, a lanternfly population can cause serious long-term damage. The feeding weakens trees, reduces fruit yields, and in severe cases can kill younger plants entirely.

Adding insult to injury, as they feed, lanternflies excrete a sticky, sugary substance called honeydew. This coats leaves, outdoor furniture, decks, and vehicles, and quickly leads to the growth of black sooty mold — which further suffocates the plants underneath it and leaves your outdoor spaces looking like something went very wrong.

Why Southern Maryland Is Particularly Vulnerable

Southern Maryland's landscape makes it especially susceptible to spotted lanternfly spread. The region's mix of hardwood forest, agricultural land, waterfront properties, and residential neighborhoods with mature trees creates ideal habitat. The abundance of tree of heaven along roadsides gives lanternflies an easy foothold, and from there they move outward onto the trees and plants you actually care about.

Warmer temperatures along the Chesapeake Bay and Potomac River corridor also extend the active season, giving lanternfly populations more time to feed and reproduce before winter sets in.

The egg-laying behavior of the spotted lanternfly makes the problem particularly tricky. Egg masses are laid in flat, gray, putty-like patches on smooth surfaces — tree bark, fence posts, outdoor furniture, stone walls, even vehicles. They are easy to miss and easy to accidentally transport to new locations, which is a big part of how this pest spreads so quickly from county to county.

Why DIY Isn't Enough

A lot of homeowners spot lanternflies and reach for whatever spray is on the shelf. And yes, some over-the-counter contact insecticides will kill lanternflies on contact. But killing the ones you can see is only a fraction of the problem.

Effective lanternfly management means:

• Finding and destroying egg masses. Egg masses laid in fall can overwinter successfully and hatch in spring, starting the cycle all over again. They need to be identified, scraped, and disposed of properly — not just sprayed.
• Treating host trees correctly. Systemic insecticide applications to the tree itself, absorbed through the bark or roots, can protect the plant and kill feeding lanternflies over a longer period of time. This requires the right products applied at the right time of year by someone who knows what they're doing.
• Monitoring for reinfestation. Lanternflies are highly mobile. Treating your property once doesn't mean they won't be back next week from a neighboring yard, a nearby tree line, or a vehicle that unknowingly carried an egg mass.
• Knowing what you're looking at. Not every spotted insect is a lanternfly, and not every treatment approach is appropriate for every situation. Misidentification leads to wasted effort and money.

Southern MD Boys Pest Control knows Southern Maryland's pest landscape inside and out. We can assess your property, identify active infestations and egg masses, apply appropriate treatments, and set up a monitoring plan so you're not starting from scratch every season.

What You Can Do Right Now

While you're waiting for us to come out, there are a few things you can do immediately:

• Scrape egg masses. If you find gray, putty-like patches on trees, fences, or outdoor furniture, scrape them into a bag of hand sanitizer or rubbing alcohol and seal it before disposing. This kills the eggs.
• Report sightings. Maryland Department of Agriculture wants to know where lanternflies are showing up. You can report sightings at mda.maryland.gov.
• Don't move firewood or outdoor items between locations without checking them. The spotted lanternfly spreads largely by hitching rides.
• Call us. Seriously. The earlier a lanternfly population is addressed on your property, the better the outcome for your trees, your garden, and your neighbors.
  
  

Southern MD Boys Pest Control Is on It

We've been serving Southern Maryland — St. Inigoes, Lexington Park, Ridge, California, Leonardtown, Great Mills, and beyond — long enough to watch the pest landscape in this region change. The spotted lanternfly is one of the most serious new threats we've seen move into St. Mary's County, and it's not going away on its own.

If you've seen spotted lanternflies on your property, or you just want someone to take a look and tell you what you're dealing with, give us a call. We offer free estimates, we know this area like the back of our hand, and we'd rather you call us early than wait until your favorite maple tree is dripping honeydew and covered in black mold.

Call Southern MD Boys Pest Control at 443-802-1022 or visit somdpest.com.

Because the spotted lanternfly is invasive enough. Your property doesn't need to be its next stop.