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What exactly is the Farmer’s Almanac? I always thought it was basically a big set of historical data that helped provide a sort of statistical foundation for ch

What exactly is the Farmer’s Almanac? I always thought it was basically a big set of historical data that helped provide a sort of statistical foundation for choices, even if the why isn’t explained. Which seems like I can completely understand it as a practical tool in the past but fairly obsolete in modern times. Or did it evolve, too, and was essentially modern science and maths, dressed in the trappings of a beloved cultural relic? Or is it more than ever a collection of stories and advice and other culture, and much less about the actual almanac?

m463 1y ago
"The 2026 Old Farmer's Almanac" provides weather forecasts, astronomical data, and practical wisdom for those living close to the earth, continuing its tradition since 1792."
- 9rx 1y ago
  The parent is asking about the Farmer's Almanac (the one bidding farewell), first published in 1818.
  - Waterluvian 1y ago
    I actually don’t realize there were two! I’m guessing there’s a history here involving a fork.
    - shervinafshar 1y ago
      But if you'd like to see a sample of _Old_ Farmer's Almanac, their 2026 issue could be accessed here: https://reader.mediawiremobile.com/TheOldFarmersAlmanac/issues/209314/viewer https://reader.mediawiremobile.com/TheOldFarmersAlmanac/issu... I always enjoy reading through those tabulated stuff; see pp. 280-281.
    - 9rx 1y ago
      > I’m guessing there’s a history here involving a fork. This is no direct relationship. Just a case of a competitor deciding to compete in the marketplace.
      - conductr 1y ago
        Seems like the original already named it wisely. If it’s 1820 and I’m a farmer, I’m definitely getting my almanac from an “old farmer”.
        9rx 1y ago
        Stands to reason, not just in name, but because The Farmer's Almanac was a spin on The Old Farmer's Almanac that was geared more towards the growing urban population.
deleted 1y ago
[deleted]
dannyphantom 1y ago
Kinda all of the above. It did evolve into a scientific(-adjacent) thing, if that makes sense. My boyfriend’s parents have all of them sitting on a dedicated shelf. Interesting to read through. They definitely leaned into being a cultural artifact. Jokes, anecdotes, stories, how-tos, homeopathic recipes for things like cough syrups, etc. They all look kinda the same so either brand consistency or to keep the nostalgia factor. Their sun/moon/eclipse is rooted in real math foundations but their “proprietary” weather forecast model was developed when the publication began in 1792. It’s like 30% hard astronomical data, 30% proprietary models that they’ve been using for generations and 40% storytelling. edit for context on scientific side: WRT forecast modeling, the publication claims ~80% accuracy [1] but it’s been found to come out to about ~50%+ under scrutiny [2] [1] https://www.almanac.com/2026-old-farmers-almanac https://www.almanac.com/2026-old-farmers-almanac [2] https://climate.colostate.edu/blog/index.php/2024/08/23/should-you-use-the-farmers-almanac-winter-forecast/ https://climate.colostate.edu/blog/index.php/2024/08/23/shou...
- conductr 1y ago
  They have to predict the weather for the year in a book that has to go through the publishing and distribution process ahead of time. My local weather news has all the benefits of real time data and weather models yet I think their accuracy rate is just as poor when it comes to producing the 7 day outlook. It’s common to hear a forecast for rain/cold front/etc in 7 day outlook that just never materializes. Also the timing of the event if it does arrive is almost always off by a day or two. Often they have the whole town worried about something that’s definitely happening Friday, they talk about it all week, everyone is preparing, little league games getting rescheduled, etc. then only hours beforehand it’s well looks like maybe Sunday. Then Sunday comes and instead of inches of rain, it’s a sprinkle. I’m not even trying to be critical of weather reporting, I get that it’s a crapshoot but doing it a year+ ahead of time and getting similar results/accuracy is actually quite impressive.
  - Waterluvian 1y ago
    I didn't study too much meteorology in undergrad, but one thing impressed upon us is that any forecast beyond maybe 3 days is basically guesswork. I think what might be getting observed here is that when forecasting that many days out, the local data becomes so unimportant to the model's outcome that the model is just reflecting historical climate trends. Which kind of makes both the same kind of model. Ie. when forecasting tomorrow, the current temperature and pressure data really makes a difference. But once pushed to 7 days, those data essentially become a proxy for typical weather at that time of year, possibly down-weighted by a lot. I just woke up and I feel like I'm doing a very poor job trying to describe this.

m463 1y ago

"The 2026 Old Farmer's Almanac" provides weather forecasts, astronomical data, and practical wisdom for those living close to the earth, continuing its tradition since 1792."

9rx 1y ago
The parent is asking about the Farmer's Almanac (the one bidding farewell), first published in 1818.
- Waterluvian 1y ago
  I actually don’t realize there were two! I’m guessing there’s a history here involving a fork.
  - shervinafshar 1y ago
    But if you'd like to see a sample of _Old_ Farmer's Almanac, their 2026 issue could be accessed here: https://reader.mediawiremobile.com/TheOldFarmersAlmanac/issues/209314/viewer https://reader.mediawiremobile.com/TheOldFarmersAlmanac/issu... I always enjoy reading through those tabulated stuff; see pp. 280-281.
  - 9rx 1y ago
    > I’m guessing there’s a history here involving a fork. This is no direct relationship. Just a case of a competitor deciding to compete in the marketplace.
    - conductr 1y ago
      Seems like the original already named it wisely. If it’s 1820 and I’m a farmer, I’m definitely getting my almanac from an “old farmer”.
      - 9rx 1y ago
        Stands to reason, not just in name, but because The Farmer's Almanac was a spin on The Old Farmer's Almanac that was geared more towards the growing urban population.

deleted 1y ago

[deleted]

dannyphantom 1y ago

Kinda all of the above. It did evolve into a scientific(-adjacent) thing, if that makes sense. My boyfriend’s parents have all of them sitting on a dedicated shelf. Interesting to read through. They definitely leaned into being a cultural artifact. Jokes, anecdotes, stories, how-tos, homeopathic recipes for things like cough syrups, etc. They all look kinda the same so either brand consistency or to keep the nostalgia factor. Their sun/moon/eclipse is rooted in real math foundations but their “proprietary” weather forecast model was developed when the publication began in 1792. It’s like 30% hard astronomical data, 30% proprietary models that they’ve been using for generations and 40% storytelling. edit for context on scientific side: WRT forecast modeling, the publication claims ~80% accuracy [1] but it’s been found to come out to about ~50%+ under scrutiny [2] [1] https://www.almanac.com/2026-old-farmers-almanac https://www.almanac.com/2026-old-farmers-almanac [2] https://climate.colostate.edu/blog/index.php/2024/08/23/should-you-use-the-farmers-almanac-winter-forecast/ https://climate.colostate.edu/blog/index.php/2024/08/23/shou...

conductr 1y ago
They have to predict the weather for the year in a book that has to go through the publishing and distribution process ahead of time. My local weather news has all the benefits of real time data and weather models yet I think their accuracy rate is just as poor when it comes to producing the 7 day outlook. It’s common to hear a forecast for rain/cold front/etc in 7 day outlook that just never materializes. Also the timing of the event if it does arrive is almost always off by a day or two. Often they have the whole town worried about something that’s definitely happening Friday, they talk about it all week, everyone is preparing, little league games getting rescheduled, etc. then only hours beforehand it’s well looks like maybe Sunday. Then Sunday comes and instead of inches of rain, it’s a sprinkle. I’m not even trying to be critical of weather reporting, I get that it’s a crapshoot but doing it a year+ ahead of time and getting similar results/accuracy is actually quite impressive.
- Waterluvian 1y ago
  I didn't study too much meteorology in undergrad, but one thing impressed upon us is that any forecast beyond maybe 3 days is basically guesswork. I think what might be getting observed here is that when forecasting that many days out, the local data becomes so unimportant to the model's outcome that the model is just reflecting historical climate trends. Which kind of makes both the same kind of model. Ie. when forecasting tomorrow, the current temperature and pressure data really makes a difference. But once pushed to 7 days, those data essentially become a proxy for typical weather at that time of year, possibly down-weighted by a lot. I just woke up and I feel like I'm doing a very poor job trying to describe this.