Is this powdery mildew?

[erins327]

Hey guys,

Pretty experienced gardener here, however this is my first lime tree and its about 3 years old now. In the last week I have discovered these little tiny flies with a sticky white residue on the leaves.The residue looks like someone sprinked the tree with Epsom salts. They mainly are colonizing the young immature leaves, which at first though it was leaf miner, but that doesnt seem to be the case? I can't find out what it is on any of my normal books, blogs and posts. Anyone give me a hint?

[rainbowgardener]

not powdery mildew and not leaf miners.

The sticky residue is left behind by the insects.

[erins327]

Ah ha! Thanks Rainbowgardener. Of course after posting I was able to find one resource that said this was called 'honeydew' which in fact, is basically insect poop.

So are the bugs most likely aphids? They don't look the same as the typical ones that get on my vegetable plants.

I sprayed with soap last night, I hope this does the trick?

[rainbowgardener]

Aphids, whiteflies, leafhoppers and other insects produce honeydew.

Their diet of plant juices is very high in carbohydrates. The honeydew is a way to rid themselves of excess sugars.