Spittlebugs (family Cercopidae)
The collection of 'spit' resting on the chamomile shown here is actually a mix of liquid waste and mucosal secretions that are whipped up into tiny air bubbles by finger-like appendages on this wee feller:
This is the nymphal stage of, I'm guessing here, a meadow spittlebug. That foamy spit protects its soft-bodied self from drying out, insulates from heat and cold, and also keeps him safe from predators and parasites.
Eggs are laid at the end of summer, they overwinter and in May they begin to hatch and look for a place to grow. Their favorite nesting place is a pine tree but they find many a home within a garden. A few weeks of feeding and they go from spittlebug to 'frog hopper' -- in their adult form they can jump over 100 times their length. (whoa)
Personally (and despite the fact that these guys like to whip up a hut of foamy waste to live and grow in), I find the little wee green guys to be pretty cute. But they are considered pests.
These babies pierce plants and suck sap which causes damage to the plants. The liquid they glean from our plants helps to make that foamy home. How much damage they cause isn't really that significant unless you have a serious infestation. You can blast your plants with a hose and that will remove them...but I don't have too many and am of the opinion of 'live and let live' so I let them stay. They'll be gone in a couple weeks anyway.
(I did put this little guy that I photo'd into a massive pile of lemon balm growing near the chamomile. 'Spreading the wealth', I suppose.)
Mind you, if my spittlebug infestation got out of control, I'd definitely take to removing them from my plants by any force deemed necessary. But it's not an issue now...so they stay.
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