Wow Jan...that second pic of mindorensis is GORGEOUS. I am waiting and waiting for blooms on mine, but mindorensis is a very slow grower for me. Like Raven, I'll just live vicariously through your blooms for now! Gabi

These look to me more like aphids - I hope somebody else can confirm. They are too big to be spider mites. The fact that you saw dead ones near the plant is also a give-away - spider mites generally are not found like that. Do you see tiny webbing near the youngest growth on the plant? If you do not, they are likely NOT spider mites (if you do, then it's almost certainly them though). The infestation seems to be pretty severe (is that stem completely covered with them?) - BUT if they are aphids, the good news is that they are pretty easy to control. As you already found out, they get dislodged by a simple spray of water. Once they are off the plant, most aphid species can't get back onto it. Because of those highly crinkled leaves, it's very difficult to hit all the nooks and crannies with a water hose though. Best to take it outside and hit it with a spray from all sorts of directions very thoroughly. Some soil may be washed out, but it's way better than leaving any suckers behind. You can easily top up the soil. People have also successfully controlled bugs on H. compacta by completely submerging the whole plant, pot and all vines, into a bath or other container of soapy water (a couple teaspoons of gentle soap, not detergent, per gallon of water) for a few minutes to an hour or so. Your plant is large, so I am not sure if this is realistic. You need to swish the plant under that water so that it gets to all the hiding places, just like a spray should. The soap removes the protective coating on the aphids and causes them to die of dehydration. Soap solution can also be sprayed on the plant, but I think it'll be ineffective here because a spray bottle just does not create a stream forceful enough to reach behind all those leaf angles. No matter what treatment you choose, it's a good idea to repeat it, even after they all seem completely gone, weekly or so, a couple times, just to hit the ones that may have survived, before they breed. Good luck! (You don't need much here, but still...) A 40-year old wedding gift hoya is something VERY special, and I hope very much you can control these buggers.

Ok, first of all, REPOT IT. Get rid of the soil it is in. Hoya prefer a well-draining medium. Fine orchid bark mixed with perlite and coarse sand (all found in the same area at Lowes) will do. Mix equal parts (1-1-1) of each. Soak overnight. Before potting the hoya in the new mix, soak the plant for about 15 minutes to loosen the soil (soil is not good for epiphytes, which use their aerial roots to attach to, and grow up, trees. Remove as much of the soil as you can (the more, the better). Repot in the well-draining medium. In about a week, check the pot. If the first 2 inches are dry, water. Use a water soluble or liquid fertilizer at 1/4 strength (winter) every time you water. In the summer, boost the amount to 1/2 strength. Usual strength is one teaspoon for most fertilizers, so in the winter, it would be 1/4 teaspoon, and in the summer, 1/2. Hope I have helped!

Is this a relatively new cultivar of the compacta variety? I really like the inner varegation, even prefer it to the common outer var! Couldn't find much in the way of info in my searches.