The traditional Chinese solar calendar di- vides the year int0 24 solar terms. Awakening of Insects falls on March 5 and ends on March

19 this year.

Awakening of Insects signals a rise in tem- perature and increased rainfall. As the third so- lar term in the solar year， its name alludes to the fact that animals sleeping in winter are awakened by spring thunder and that the earth begins to come back to life. It is the key time for spring agricultural activities.

Here are 4 things you may not know about Awakening of Insects.

Spring thunder cracks the sky

The spring thunder is most noticeable dur- ing the Awakening of Insects solar term. An old Chinese saying goes： \"If the first spring thunder crashes before the Awakening of Insects solar term， there will be abnormal weather that year. \" The Awakening of Insects falls after the end of winter and before the beginning of spring. Wind during this period is an important factor in weather forecasting.

Modern meteorological science shows that around the Awakening of Insects. the earth be- comes humid and the hot air near the surface rises， meanwhile. the hot humid air from the north is strong and creates frequent winds. For this reason， thunder occurs in this perio

covers a large range of latitudes from north tosouth， so the first spring thunder appears at dif- ferenttimesindifferent ateas

Spring ploughing

The Awakening of Insects is an extremelyimportant time for farmers and is widely seenas the beginning of the busiest time for agricul-tural work. During this period， most parts ofChina experience the quickest rise in tempera-tures， with the average level reaching above 10degrees Celsius. and there is a marked increasein sunshine， which provides good natural condi-tions for farming.

Old Chinese sayings such as \"once theAwakening of Insects comes， spring pIoughingnever rests\" reveal the importance of this termto farmers.

A good time for fishing

Around the Awakening of Insects. hilber-nating animals wake up， and so do fish.theyswim from deep water to shallow water insearch of food， mating and bearing young It isa good time for fishing.

Fishing can provide mental and physicalrelaxation， especially for people living in thecity. Driving to the suburbs. fishing in a lake，bathing in the sunlight， enjoying the singingbirds， fragrant flowers and waving willowsmake for a perfect weekend in spring.

Eating pears

Eating pears around the Awakening of In-sects is a widely-practiced custom in China.Asthe weather gets warmer and the air becomesdry，people tend to feel their mouths areparched and tongues dry， which can cause coldsor coughs. A pear is sweet， juicy and cold，moistening the lungs to arrest a cough. There-fore， pears are highly recommended during theAwakening of Insect.

中國(guó)傳統(tǒng)農(nóng)歷將一年分為二十四個(gè)節(jié)氣，今年驚蟄節(jié)氣從3月5日開始，3月19日結(jié)束。

驚蟄的到來(lái)預(yù)示著氣溫升高和降雨量增加。作為二十四節(jié)氣中的第三個(gè)，驚蟄意味著冬眠的動(dòng)物被春雷喚醒，春回大地萬(wàn)物復(fù)蘇。此時(shí)中國(guó)大部分地區(qū)也進(jìn)入了春耕的關(guān)鍵時(shí)期。

一起來(lái)看看關(guān)于驚蟄的4個(gè)小常識(shí)。

春雷響，萬(wàn)物長(zhǎng)

驚蟄節(jié)氣最顯著的特征就是春雷響起。中國(guó)有句古話：“未過(guò)驚蟄先打雷，四十九天云不開?！斌@蟄往往介于冬末春初之間。驚蟄時(shí)節(jié)的風(fēng)也是預(yù)測(cè)后期天氣的一個(gè)重要依據(jù)。

現(xiàn)代氣象科學(xué)顯示，驚蟄前后，大地濕度漸高，而近地面的熱氣上升，同時(shí)，北方的濕熱空氣勢(shì)力較強(qiáng)，活動(dòng)頻繁，導(dǎo)致這個(gè)時(shí)期春雷陣陣。由于我國(guó)南北跨度大，春雷始鳴的時(shí)間不一。

春耕

對(duì)農(nóng)民來(lái)說(shuō)，驚蟄是非常重要的一個(gè)節(jié)氣，它被廣泛視為一年農(nóng)忙的開始。中國(guó)大部分地區(qū)氣溫在此期間上升最快，平均達(dá)到10攝氏度以上，并且光照明顯增強(qiáng)，為春耕提供了良好的自然條件。

古語(yǔ)云：“過(guò)了驚蟄節(jié)，春耕不能歇”，講的就是驚蟄對(duì)農(nóng)民的重要性。

釣魚好時(shí)節(jié)

驚蟄前后，動(dòng)物從冬眠中醒來(lái)，魚兒也不例外。他們從深水游到淺水中來(lái)覓食，交配和產(chǎn)卵，正是釣魚的好時(shí)機(jī)。

釣魚可以帶來(lái)身心上的放松，尤其是對(duì)生活在城市里的人。開車來(lái)到郊外的湖邊，沐浴在陽(yáng)光下，聆聽(tīng)小鳥歌唱，享受清新花香，柳樹隨風(fēng)飄揚(yáng)，春天的周末如此完美！

吃梨正當(dāng)時(shí)

驚蟄吃梨是一項(xiàng)在中國(guó)廣為流傳的習(xí)俗。天氣轉(zhuǎn)暖，空氣變得更加干了，人們會(huì)感到口干舌燥，會(huì)造成感冒或咳嗽。梨子甘甜、多汁、清涼，有止咳潤(rùn)肺的功效。因此驚蟄期間非常適合吃梨。