In the past, China's use of wood from infected trees to make pallets and other packing materials makes it highly likely that these materials have been exposed to the Asian longhorned beetle. The goal of the current ban on untreated wood is to protect the United States from future infestations of the beetle. The Chicago Botanic Garden has not sighted any Asian longhorned beetles within the Garden. It has implemented a policy of actively monitoring the plant collections for evidence of the insects. The monitoring focuses on the perimeter of the Garden where the beetles may enter on vehicles entering or passing by the Garden.
Sugar maples are a preferred host for the beetles.
Adult beetles can be killed by placing them in a closed container with rubbing alcohol. A new control method is the latest hope in the battle against the tree-infesting beetle. The insecticide called Merit, which has met with success in China, is being applied around trunks of hardwood trees in the Ravenswood area. It has been shown to kill beetles entering a tree but not larvae already inhabiting tree trunks. May. Scientists have been researching control methods since the 1996 outbreak in New York.