Here is Virginia it was almost 70 degrees today, warmest winter I can recall in a long time. Grass is green and a few trees are starting to bud, apparently they didn't get the memo it is still February. If we don't get some snow or at least a real good ground freeze sometime soon, the bugs are going to reek havoc this summer.........
A link to a good article on insects population and winter.
http://www.mnn.com/your-home/organic-farming-gardening/stories/does-a-cold-winter-decrease-bugs "What impacts insect populations is not how cold it gets in the winter but when spring arrives, said Paul Guillebeau, a professor of entomology at the University of Georgia. “Insects survive the winter as eggs, pupae, larvae or, in some cases, as adults in tiny micro habits in leaf litter, the ground, bark on trees or even in your house,” he explained. “When the temperature is at 40 degrees [Fahrenheit] or lower, they can’t move. At 45 degrees, they begin moving, but only slowly. If the temperature gets to 70 degrees in mid-March or early April, insects get a fast start and quickly produce multiple generations that can quickly soar to hundreds of thousands. If, however, cold temperatures extend into April or even May, insects will miss one or more of their population cycles.”
As far as weather goes, said Guillebeau, temperature is not as important to early insect populations as the amount of moisture. Very dry conditions are especially harmful to insects and will depress their populations more than cold temperatures. “Many different insects live in the soil, and they depend on soil moisture to survive,” he said. “Additionally, a drought will reduce the amount of plant biomass available as food for herbivorous insects.”
