Five Scottish weather proverbs for surviving winter With the nights becoming longer and cold begining to bite it sometimes pays to look back at some advice that has been passed down to generations of Scots at this time of year. As the day lengthens, the cauld strengthens A reminder that when the days begin to get longer, the weather often becomes colder Mony haws, mony snaws A warning that a good harvest of haw berries will result in a cold, hard winter Sorrow and ill weather come unca'd Both ill fortune and ill weather are beyond our control The rain cams scouth, when the wind's i" the south In this context scouth means freely, without restraint, and so the saying indicates that heavy rain will occur when there is a wind blowing from the south. Cast not a clout till May be oot Often taken to mean that people should not remove any of their winter clothing until the month of May has passed. However, it is thought by some that May refers to the hawthorn, the advice being not to remove any winter clothes until the hawthorn is in bloom.