Spotted lantern flies feed on vineyards and endanger vineyards

It’s 2 p.m. in Bellesville, Maryland, and Mike Fury has been patrolling his vineyards since 1975 in search of an insect that has recently begun wreaking havoc on his property – the spotted gas lantern.

“If we don’t destroy them, [they’ll] “This is the most destructive insect,” said Fiori, a 78-year-old immigrant from Italy whose family has been in the wine business for more than 300 years.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, vampire-like ornamentals feed on a wide variety of ornamental, fruit, and woody trees, including grapevines. Fiori Winery Among those who have experienced the devastating effects of the insect, it has already lost about 50% of its production this year to lanterns, according to its owner.

“We’ve never seen anything like this,” Fury said.

The spotted lantern fly is native to Asia, and was first discovered in Pennsylvania in 2014. It has since spread to 14 states: Connecticut, Delaware, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, and West Virginia.

The exact number of insects that wreak havoc on crops across the country is still unknown. but according to Julie Urban, Associate Research Professor of Entomology at Penn State, Probably in the billions.

“There is a possibility that the lantern fly is out there among the most dangerous things that can affect the vineyard,” Urban told CNBC. “The real story will depend on how widespread it is.”

The spotted lantern fly is not a great flyer, but it is wonderfully mobile. Researchers say they made their way across the United States by clinging to wheeled car wells and jumping on trains or planes, laying their eggs along the way.

In Kempton, Pennsylvania, Larry Schrader owned one of the first vineyards to be hit hard by insects. Years later, he is still recovering.

“They completely cover the trunk and you get to the point where you can’t see the trunk anymore,” Stony Run Winery Malik told CNBC. “It’s just side-by-side lanterns that suck the juice out of your plant.”

When it comes to grapevines, experts say that insects target the vine rather than the grapes. Insects are constantly draining the plant of nutrients, Schraeder said.

“It eliminates the plant’s ability to ripen fruit and store carbohydrates during the winter, and most deaths occur the following year when the plant does not wake up in spring,” he said.

It’s been four years since spotted lanterns began feeding on his vines, Shrawder said.

“For a long time, we thought we’d be out of business,” he said. “The 15% of the generosity we lost translates to about 30,000 bottles per year and about $525,000 worth of product per year thrown away by the flies.”

To try to keep insects away, Shader wrapped his vines in special white nets. That didn’t work, but he said spraying insecticide on the trees around the vineyards helped.

“This isn’t entirely successful – but we certainly reduce insect bloat in the vineyard in this way,” he said.

The main concern is that Planthopper will invade the largest US vineyards in New York and California.

It’s not a question of if — it’s a question of when,” Urban said. “Currently, the lantern fly has not yet been established in the vineyards [in New York’s] Long Island or … at Finger Lakes. Certainly if they go to the wine growing regions of the West Coast, it could have … a very serious economic impact. “

It is not yet known how much damage the spotted lantern fly will cause as it continues to spread. But Fury said his advice to other vineyard owners is that early detection is key.

“Don’t let your guard down for a moment,” Fury said.