Spotted Lanternfly Puts Harford County Under Quarantine: State

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — Two counties in northeastern Maryland are under quarantine due to the spotted lanternfly. Maryland's secretary of agriculture issued the quarantine order Monday, and it means that businesses and government agencies will need a permit to move certain items, including landscaping, remodeling, construction and packing waste, among others.

Harford and Cecil counties have been harboring the insect, which is a notorious hitchhiker.

Considered a "major threat to the region's agricultural industries," the spotted lanternfly feeds on more than 70 types of plants, such as apples, grapes, peaches, oak, pine and other crops, according to the Maryland Department of Agriculture.

Nearly 2,700 trees in Harford and Cecil counties have been treated for the plant pest, including more than 2,400 in the upper northeast corner of Cecil County and nearly 300 along the northern border of Harford County.

All the trees that were treated are of the variety Ailanthus altissima, more commonly known as "tree of heaven." Spotted lanternflies use this tree to reproduce, state agricultural officials say.

So far, it has a limited distribution, Maryland Secretary of Agriculture Joe Bartenfelder said in the quarantine order dated Oct. 28. The insects were found and treated in September, Bartenfelder said.

Native to Asia, the spotted lanternfly was first discovered in Pennsylvania in 2014. It has been found in New Jersey, Virginia and Maryland.

Think You Found A Spotted Lanternfly?

• Take a picture of it.
• Collect it in a plastic bag, then put that in the freezer.
• Notify the Maryland Department of Agriculture at DontBug.MD@maryland.gov.
• Send any dead samples (from any life stage) to the Maryland Department of Agriculture Plant Protection and Weed Management Program at 50 Harry S. Truman Parkway, Annapolis, MD 21401.

What Does The Quarantine Mean For You?