Caterpillars, Leaf Hoppers, or Invisible Worms?

It's becoming an infestation. I've sprayed BT after I saw a caterpillar last week. I later sprayed Spinosad and Cease (fungi-warder-offer) combined. I can hit it with Tetrasan again, but I'm 4 weeks into flower now and can you tell me Doc, what it is I got? Leaf-sucking damage on the tops, and black shiny spots on the bottom.Thanks!

Its aphids. I can see two green aphids on the bottom pic.

The black spots are sap called honeydew which is excreted by aphids as they feed on plants.

The honeydew is originaly translucent but turns black as it molds.

Thanks fender! TetraSan works well and last for a few weeks. It's a translaminar poison, meaning it kills from both sides of the leaf. I'll mix some BT with it, and farmer suggested, "A few drops of unscented Ivory dish soap. A little soap film helps the insecticide to cling to the leaves longer and not drip-off as fast. Spray early a.m. because once evaporated Spinosad or BT isn't effective anymore.
Nice monniker "Fender", my co-author has a few of them and named his Rot, Fender in Leo's honor. THANKS!

"Leaf hoppers are not your problem. They normally attack leafs and the tender new shoots and stems. If you had leaf hopper problems, you would certainly see the damage on the leafs from a distance.

It appears as though the aphids are back, or some other form of eating/sucking insect, are present on the bottom of the leaf. The freckled damage, on the top of the leaf picture you sent, confirms that type of eating/sucking insect.

However, in the last picture you sent of the whole plant (not shown here), I am also seeing the beginning stages of a PM infestation on the tops of a couple of leafs. That is to be expected, considering the moist climate in your neighborhood.

I'm glad you sprayed the Spinosad, but don't expect it to be a contact pesticide that stops the pests in their tracks. It takes a couple of days for the effects to be seen, as the pest has to ingest the Spinosad on the leaf to be effective. The same is true for the BT.

Both Spinosad and BT degrade quickly in sunlight, so I suggest that your spray very early in the morning, as soon as there is enough light for you to see. You can combine Spinosad and/or BT with the Cease.

To assist the active ingredients in the Spinosad and/or BT, you may want to consider adding only a few drops of liquid dish-washing soap, such as Ivory non scented, to your little pump sprayer. (Not Dawn soap.) The soap will add another level of protection and speed up decimation of your bugs. In addition to being a "spreader sticker" that helps to keep most of the Spinosad and/or BT from dripping off the leaf, soap also acts to damage the protective coat of those soft bodied insects, which will dehydrate them. Again, you will have to give the concoction two or three days to work its deadly magic on the bugs.

Regardless of whether you use Spinosad or BT, mix it with Cease as well as a couple of drops of soap, and liberally apply to the tops and bottom of leafs, as well as power spraying the buds themselves. (The idea is to fully penetrate the budlet to ensure the Cease soaks through to the stalk.)

Being as you found a live caterpillar, either the Spinosad or the BT will take care of any residual caterpillars and eggs left behind by moths or butterflys. I would suggest closely inspecting the budlets nearest to where you found the caterpillar and search for any dead budlets or sawdust looking caterpillar poop. Don't be bashful about digging around in your budlets, looking for any damage.

Last, don't forget about using the TetraSan in combination with Spinosad or BT, with soap. It takes overwhelming force to kill off those bugs at this stage in the growth of your gals. - farmer
CVS Pharmacy

TetraSan: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00552P9KY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Cease™: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B019UMC19G/ref=olp_product_details?_encoding=UTF8&me=

ABOUT MILSTOP:

You stated and asked, "My PM evaporated. I used Cease the other day, and I thought Cease was for PM defending too! Should I add Milstop to my arsenal?"

Using Cease for PM is good, but it is not the final answer. The MilStop is also good, but again, it is not the final answer. There are fungicides that will stop PM dead in its tracks, but we cannot use them without destroying the gals or possibly our lungs (e.g. Eagle 20). It's a tricky dance. The best we can hope for is to suppress the outbreak and further spread of PM.

This requires regular and continuous application of Cease and MilStop. So, to answer your question, yes, you should incorporate MilStop into your arsenal of fungicides and miticides.

The one aspect of using MilStop, that is a PITA (PAIN-IN-THE-ASS), is that one cannot use it in conjunction with most miticides. MilStop raises the ph of the solution big time, but most miticides need to be applied with neutral, or lower, ph water to get the best bang for the buck. As the ph rises, the half life of most miticides is reduced dramatically.

Both PM and Botrytis does not like an alkaline environment, and use of MilStop will create an inhospitable environment by raising the ph. The leafs I sprayed are looking good, but this morning I found other leafs with PM that were hidden in the jungle, and I will have to spray again soon.

I purchased MilStop from Amazon, and the cost for a 5 lb package was $87.00 with free S&H from Evergreen. The small volume use rate is 1 TBS per gallon. Once the package is opened, I suggest keeping it in a high grade Ziploc bag in order to keep it dry. Do not store in the fridge.
https://www.amazon.com/MilStop-Organic-Foliar-Fungicide-5lb/dp/B007JJVOGE