Spotted Lanternfly creeping toward Western North Carolina

By Jamie Bookwalter | Extension Specialist, Mountain Conifer IPM Forestry & Environmental Resources NC State Extension, NC State University

Spotted Lanternfly. courtesy photo | APHIS

A spotted lanternfly (SLF) infestation is now established in Caldwell County, a county abutting some of the highest producing Fraser fir counties in the state. Spotted lantern fly has not caused measurable damage on adult Fraser fir in states such as Pennsylvania, which has dealt with SLF for a decade. However, these insects will lay egg sacks on trucks or machinery and possibly Fraser fir trunks.

SLF is not a federally regulated pest. However, as the regulations stand currently (July 2025), if you farm in a county with an established SLF infestation, you must be under a compliance agreement with NC Department of Ag to ship Christmas trees to California, and the California-bound shipment will need to transit with a Regulatory Official’s letter. These regulations can change at any time. Therefore, it’s best to prevent SLF from finding its preferred host, Tree of Heaven, on your farm to lower your chances of your trees having any SLF tag-alongs no matter where your trees are destined.

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Now is the time to prioritize removing Tree of Heaven from your property. Cutting the tree is not enough to stop the tree from re-sprouting. Pesticide applications using a hack-and-squirt technique have been found to be more successful. Tree of Heaven has some look-alikes such as staghorn sumac and black walnut. If you are unsure, please contact your local extension agent to help with identification.

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Republished from NC State Extension, NC State University.