By George Moffatt
We homo sapiens are probably the most invasive species of all, but nature, no slouch at getting even, constantly fights back. In New Jersey, we highlight recent invasives, such as the elegantly named porcelain ivy and the colorfully named spotted lanternfly, plus an old friend, the stink bug.
In 1950, there were no known invasive plants in the state, but today about 50 are firmly established, with about 150 labeled as “emerging.” These invasives have spread rapidly, displacing native plants, threatening agricultural produce, and affecting the ecological balance of native birds and insects.
A recently emerging invasive plant, porcelain ivy (Ampelopsis brevipedunculata), is a stealthy vine imported from Asia in 1870. It is now an out-of-control invasive with green leaves and red tendrils that overruns and smothers other plants, shrubs, and trees. In mid-summer, clusters of small white grape-like fruit appear. By September, these berries turn pink, lavender, turquoise, blue, and black, and these resemble porcelain, hence the name.
There is another invasive, mile-a-minute (Persicaria perfoliata), that looks and behaves just like porcelain ivy but has small barbs on its vines that allow it also to climb up tree bark.
To control both of them, remove, bag, and dispose of the berry clusters before they turn color. Otherwise, birds and mammals will eat the berries, scatter the seeds, and next year you’ll have even more plants entwining your ornamentals.
The Virginia Nursery Society suggests making a weed killer of vinegar, salt, and liquid soap to sprinkle on the plants’ roots, avoiding, of course, your other plants. We shudder, however, to think of the sprays desperate farmers might be using.
One invasive insect disaster is the emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis), which arrived in Central New Jersey in 2014 and by 2020 was recorded all over the state. This bug from Northeastern Asia is destroying ash trees across the United States and in Canada.
Another bug, the attractively named spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula), is such a scourge that the state’s very concerned Department of Agriculture (NJDA) has quarantined all 21 counties, hoping that residents and businesses take efforts to contain the spread. The NJDA is no longer asking residents to report sightings of these bugs.
Technically a plant hopper, the lanternfly is a native of China and Japan that was first reported in Pennsylvania in 2014 and in New Jersey in 2018. Its voracious appetite is devastation personified for over 70 host species, according to NJDA. For more information about this winged grim reaper, click here.
But don’t hit them with pesticides. Instead, the NJDA has an unofficial solution: Squish ‘em. Using your foot, it’s easy but messy. Whether through affection or stupidity, the flies will walk up to you and even land on your shoulder. For those who are squeamish about squishing, vacuum them up or catch them on fly paper if they’re indoors, and if you find them outside, plant milkweed, which is poisonous to lanternflies but not to pollinators, or spray them with vinegar.
A third invasive bug is an unfortunately very familiar plant eater, the brown marmorated stink bug (Pentatomidae). It also came from Asia and was discovered in the mid-1990s in Allentown, Pa. Since then, stink bugs have spread across the country, including, of course, New Jersey. Originally just a smelly nuisance, they now cause farmers millions of dollars in damaged produce each year.
In the fall, they winter indoors, sometimes in mass quantities. One Pennsylvania homeowner once discovered 26,000 in his house, which required more than a squishing.
Use a wet paper towel to quickly catch and dispose of the occasional indoor bug. Why wet? The soggy paper ensnares the bug, while the water contains its defensive spray, if it is one of the spraying types of stink bug. The foul odor can linger for hours.
These are just a few of a long list of invasive insects and plants in the United States and in New Jersey.
Several anti-invasive bills that the state Legislature considered in the past went nowhere. However, a pending bill (S-2186) being championed by Sen. Linda Greenstein would require an NJDA permit for anyone who wants to propagate, distribute, or sell 27 species of invasive plants. A second bill (A-2629), initially sponsored by the late Assm. Ronald Dancer, calls for an Invasive Species Task Force to study how to control invasive species. They are both welcome steps, albeit tentative.
Since our rivers and streams are already polluted with harmful pesticides and herbicides, we should fight these invasives “mano a mano”—one-on-one–using the hoe and the toe.