• About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Annual Reports
    • 2022 Strategic Plan
    • Board Meetings
    • Board of Directors >
      • 2023 Director Elections
    • Staff >
      • Career Opportunities
      • Internship Opportunity
    • Resource Assessment >
      • 2021 Results
      • 2016 Results
    • 2020 Millage
    • FOIA Requests
    • Annual Meeting >
      • 2022 WCCD Awardees
    • Conservation Update Newsletter
  • Store
  • Resources
    • School & Community Habitat Grant
    • Rain barrels & Composters >
      • Rain Barrels Information
      • Rain Barrel Common Questions
    • Tool and Equipment Rental >
      • Reserve Tools & Equipment
      • Hand Tool Rentals
      • Herbicide Application Tool Rentals
      • Tool Rental Calendar
      • Equipment Rental Calendar
    • Contractor Lists
    • Hunter Access Program
  • Events
    • Native Plant Expo & Marketplace >
      • 2023 Spring Native Plant Sale >
        • 2023 Spring Milkweed Giveaway
      • 2023 NPEM Speaker Series
      • 2023 NPEM Sponsorship
      • 2023 NPEM Vendor Application
    • Tree & Shrub Distributions >
      • 2023 Spring Tree & Shrub Sale
    • Coffee & Conservation
    • Public Meetings Calendar
  • Conservation Planning
    • NRCS Farm Bill Programs
    • MAEAP
    • MiFarmLink Inquiry
    • Farmer Cost-Share Opportunities
    • MI Farmland Preservation
    • Invasive Species
  • Education
    • Workshops & Programs >
      • Community Conservation Education
      • Conservation Agriculture Education
      • Conservation Stewards Program
    • Online resources >
      • Agriculture >
        • Farmland Preservation
        • Soils >
          • Washtenaw County Soils
          • Soil Sampling >
            • Soil Sampling Article
            • Homeowner Soil Testing
            • Agricultural Soil Testing
        • Windbreaks
        • Composting >
          • Composters
      • Forestry >
        • Community Trees
        • Tree & Shrub Planting Guide
        • Common Tree Diseases & Pests
        • Crop Tree Management
        • Fruit Tree Planting & Care
        • Likelihood of Deer Damage
        • Other Forestry Links
        • Pruning Forest Trees
        • Timber Sales
        • Urban Trees
      • Insects >
        • Animal & Insect Repellents
      • Invasive Species & Control
      • Native Plants >
        • Planting Native Plants
        • Seeding Wildflowers
      • Recycling
      • Water >
        • Groundwater >
          • Groundwater Protection - Agriculture
        • Pond Construction >
          • Pond Management
        • Rain Gardens
        • Shoreline Property
        • Stormwater Runoff & Management
        • Stream Bank Erosion and Control
        • Wells >
          • Water Testing
          • Water Screening Events
        • Wetlands >
          • Wetland Mitigation Banking
        • Wildlife >
          • Brush Piles
          • Clearcutting
          • Den Trees
      • Tree of Heaven
  • Get Involved
    • Spring Tree & Shrub Event Volunteering
  • Donate
WASHTENAW COUNTY CONSERVATION DISTRICT
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Annual Reports
    • 2022 Strategic Plan
    • Board Meetings
    • Board of Directors >
      • 2023 Director Elections
    • Staff >
      • Career Opportunities
      • Internship Opportunity
    • Resource Assessment >
      • 2021 Results
      • 2016 Results
    • 2020 Millage
    • FOIA Requests
    • Annual Meeting >
      • 2022 WCCD Awardees
    • Conservation Update Newsletter
  • Store
  • Resources
    • School & Community Habitat Grant
    • Rain barrels & Composters >
      • Rain Barrels Information
      • Rain Barrel Common Questions
    • Tool and Equipment Rental >
      • Reserve Tools & Equipment
      • Hand Tool Rentals
      • Herbicide Application Tool Rentals
      • Tool Rental Calendar
      • Equipment Rental Calendar
    • Contractor Lists
    • Hunter Access Program
  • Events
    • Native Plant Expo & Marketplace >
      • 2023 Spring Native Plant Sale >
        • 2023 Spring Milkweed Giveaway
      • 2023 NPEM Speaker Series
      • 2023 NPEM Sponsorship
      • 2023 NPEM Vendor Application
    • Tree & Shrub Distributions >
      • 2023 Spring Tree & Shrub Sale
    • Coffee & Conservation
    • Public Meetings Calendar
  • Conservation Planning
    • NRCS Farm Bill Programs
    • MAEAP
    • MiFarmLink Inquiry
    • Farmer Cost-Share Opportunities
    • MI Farmland Preservation
    • Invasive Species
  • Education
    • Workshops & Programs >
      • Community Conservation Education
      • Conservation Agriculture Education
      • Conservation Stewards Program
    • Online resources >
      • Agriculture >
        • Farmland Preservation
        • Soils >
          • Washtenaw County Soils
          • Soil Sampling >
            • Soil Sampling Article
            • Homeowner Soil Testing
            • Agricultural Soil Testing
        • Windbreaks
        • Composting >
          • Composters
      • Forestry >
        • Community Trees
        • Tree & Shrub Planting Guide
        • Common Tree Diseases & Pests
        • Crop Tree Management
        • Fruit Tree Planting & Care
        • Likelihood of Deer Damage
        • Other Forestry Links
        • Pruning Forest Trees
        • Timber Sales
        • Urban Trees
      • Insects >
        • Animal & Insect Repellents
      • Invasive Species & Control
      • Native Plants >
        • Planting Native Plants
        • Seeding Wildflowers
      • Recycling
      • Water >
        • Groundwater >
          • Groundwater Protection - Agriculture
        • Pond Construction >
          • Pond Management
        • Rain Gardens
        • Shoreline Property
        • Stormwater Runoff & Management
        • Stream Bank Erosion and Control
        • Wells >
          • Water Testing
          • Water Screening Events
        • Wetlands >
          • Wetland Mitigation Banking
        • Wildlife >
          • Brush Piles
          • Clearcutting
          • Den Trees
      • Tree of Heaven
  • Get Involved
    • Spring Tree & Shrub Event Volunteering
  • Donate

Tree-of-Heaven and Spotted Lanternfly: An Invasive Species Love Match

by Summer Roberts,
​WCCD Community Forester

​Do you have an invasive tree-of-heaven (Ailanthus altissima) in your yard, farm, or woodlot?  Then you have a love match for the invasive spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula).  Don’t let this insect’s strikingly pretty appearance fool you!  This planthopper, native to China and Southeast Asia, damages over 70 species of trees, as well as vines and shrubs, through direct sap feeding as well as indirectly by creating excretions that attract mold.  Tree-of-heaven, also native to China and once widely planted in the eastern United States for erosion control and as a street tree, is a highly preferred host plant for the insect. 
Why is this important?  Damage from spotted lanternfly (SLF) activity can stunt plant growth and may lead to plant death, meaning this insect could cause significant damage to fruit, hops, nursery, landscape, and logging industries as well as irritate a lot of home gardeners.  SLF females can lay their eggs on lots of different surfaces, including vehicles, outdoor furniture, equipment, and trees/logs.  SLF has not yet been reported in Michigan, but it is widespread in Pennsylvania, New York and other northeastern states and some cases have been cataloged in Ohio and Indiana.  So, if you are traveling across state lines, check your vehicle and equipment for egg masses and don’t move firewood!  In general, buy certified, heat-treated firewood or local firewood (i.e., 10 miles or closer to where you’ll burn it) to prevent transporting insects and disease. 
Picture
Female Lanternfly
Jenn Forman Orth. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. Via flickr
​Need help identifying whether you have tree-of-heaven on your property?  Want to see photos of the spotted lanternfly in all its life stages so you know what to look for?  Curious how to manage for either of these invasive species?   Check out the helpful organizations and articles below for more information:
Find info on tree-of-heaven, including photos, identification help, and treatment options, at PennState Extension’s “Tree-of-Heaven” article: extension.psu.edu/tree-of-heaven
Find info on SLF, including photos and life cycle, and how to report a sighting in MSUE’s “Spotted Lanternfly: A Colorful Cause for Concern” article: canr.msu.edu/resources/spotted-lanternfly-a-colorful-cause-for-concern
Find info to answer those burning questions on firewood, including what certified, heat-treated firewood is and where to buy it at The Nature Conservancy’s “Don’t Move Firewood” website: dontmovefirewood.org
Find more invasive species information or to talk to a local expert visit Jackson, Lenawee and Washtenaw Cooperative Invasive Species Management Areas (JLW CISMA): jlwcisma.weebly.com or contact Dr. Shikha Singh via Email: shikha.singh@macd.org or Phone: (517)395-2089
Picture
Tree of Heaven
​​​Luis Fernández García, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Washtenaw County Conservation District
(734) 302-8715
info@washtenawcd.org

​ 705 N. Zeeb Rd. Ann Arbor, MI 48103
Copyright 2020
  • About Us
    • Contact Us
    • Annual Reports
    • 2022 Strategic Plan
    • Board Meetings
    • Board of Directors >
      • 2023 Director Elections
    • Staff >
      • Career Opportunities
      • Internship Opportunity
    • Resource Assessment >
      • 2021 Results
      • 2016 Results
    • 2020 Millage
    • FOIA Requests
    • Annual Meeting >
      • 2022 WCCD Awardees
    • Conservation Update Newsletter
  • Store
  • Resources
    • School & Community Habitat Grant
    • Rain barrels & Composters >
      • Rain Barrels Information
      • Rain Barrel Common Questions
    • Tool and Equipment Rental >
      • Reserve Tools & Equipment
      • Hand Tool Rentals
      • Herbicide Application Tool Rentals
      • Tool Rental Calendar
      • Equipment Rental Calendar
    • Contractor Lists
    • Hunter Access Program
  • Events
    • Native Plant Expo & Marketplace >
      • 2023 Spring Native Plant Sale >
        • 2023 Spring Milkweed Giveaway
      • 2023 NPEM Speaker Series
      • 2023 NPEM Sponsorship
      • 2023 NPEM Vendor Application
    • Tree & Shrub Distributions >
      • 2023 Spring Tree & Shrub Sale
    • Coffee & Conservation
    • Public Meetings Calendar
  • Conservation Planning
    • NRCS Farm Bill Programs
    • MAEAP
    • MiFarmLink Inquiry
    • Farmer Cost-Share Opportunities
    • MI Farmland Preservation
    • Invasive Species
  • Education
    • Workshops & Programs >
      • Community Conservation Education
      • Conservation Agriculture Education
      • Conservation Stewards Program
    • Online resources >
      • Agriculture >
        • Farmland Preservation
        • Soils >
          • Washtenaw County Soils
          • Soil Sampling >
            • Soil Sampling Article
            • Homeowner Soil Testing
            • Agricultural Soil Testing
        • Windbreaks
        • Composting >
          • Composters
      • Forestry >
        • Community Trees
        • Tree & Shrub Planting Guide
        • Common Tree Diseases & Pests
        • Crop Tree Management
        • Fruit Tree Planting & Care
        • Likelihood of Deer Damage
        • Other Forestry Links
        • Pruning Forest Trees
        • Timber Sales
        • Urban Trees
      • Insects >
        • Animal & Insect Repellents
      • Invasive Species & Control
      • Native Plants >
        • Planting Native Plants
        • Seeding Wildflowers
      • Recycling
      • Water >
        • Groundwater >
          • Groundwater Protection - Agriculture
        • Pond Construction >
          • Pond Management
        • Rain Gardens
        • Shoreline Property
        • Stormwater Runoff & Management
        • Stream Bank Erosion and Control
        • Wells >
          • Water Testing
          • Water Screening Events
        • Wetlands >
          • Wetland Mitigation Banking
        • Wildlife >
          • Brush Piles
          • Clearcutting
          • Den Trees
      • Tree of Heaven
  • Get Involved
    • Spring Tree & Shrub Event Volunteering
  • Donate
  • Live Chat Support ×

    Connecting

    You: ::content::
    ::agent_name:: ::content::
    ::content::
    ::content::