Homeowners blighted by destructive Japanese knotweed may be hoping that the plant has died when it fails to emerge from its winter hibernation as normal around mid to late-March. But in fact the recent cold weather, with more low temperatures forecast, is delaying the start of the plant’s growing season by 2 to 4 weeks, as it will not awaken until the ground temperature reaches around 4°C. The ‘Beast from the East’ brought the coldest February week in five years…