Earwigs eating up my clematis and snowball bush

[GneissPlace]

I sprayed captain Jacks neem oil on the leaves tonight after catching them in the act. Pics attached. Please help me figure out if neem oil is enough or if I need to do something else. They really are eating up all the young leaves.

 

[Tetters]

These creatures do a lot to help you with your garden, and will clear infestations of aphids quite happily. If they are in your plants at the moment, they may just be sheltering from rainy weather. I would leave them alone if I were you. When we leave the insects to do what comes naturally they turn into helpers, and the garden will generally benefit, and the shrub and clematis will bounce back.

 

[GneissPlace]

They are literally eating almost all of the new growth and they are young plants so they are made up of predominantly new growth. It will be very difficult for them to grow into healthy resilient plants if they don't have leaves.