Country Life
By IAN' NIALL THE hard winter, such as we are experiencing now, is always welcomed by gardeners and farmers because at low temperatures it is reasonable to expect that large numbers of insect pests are being killed off as eggs or larva. When this happens, the benefit can only be a short-term one, for the survivors breed at a great rate once conditions favour them again. The real advantage, if there is one, is the start that young plants and seedlings get before the heavy assault by insects can take place. At the same time, when the land has been deeply affected by cold it does not support new life quickly and, even then, plants that have been exposed must recuperate before having the strength to throw out shoots. After a hard winter, when their food is slow to appear, it seems to me that the insectivorous birds are much more active and I wonder if some of the damage done to buds in their search for prey doesn't offset the advantage of the apparent scarcity of insect pests.
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