The Farmers’ Almanac: 196 Years Old and Undaunted by Climate Change

Although summer officially begins tomorrow, its start date means less and less every year: thanks to climate change, some parts of the country have felt like mid-July since May, while others are still doing their best impersonation of early March. This unpredictability, however, has done little to jar the long-range weather forecasts of the Farmers’ Almanac, that homespun compendium of astronomical data, predictions, household tips and endearing eccentricity.

The Almanac, which has been published annually since 1818, continues to thrive — both in print and online. And while the likes of AccuWeather and the Weather Channel have created a meteorological monopoly, the Almanac still holds its own as a long-term forecaster. And unlike those other behemoths, it can also tell you the best days to do everything from cutting your hair to castrating a bull. To get a better idea of how the Lewiston, ME-based Almanac has adapted to both changing technology and climate, we spoke with Sandi Duncan, its managing editor. Duncan oversees all of its editorial content — but, she says, “I don’t do the weather, so you can’t complain to me.”

Modern Farmer: Given how unpredictable the weather has become, how has that affected how you make your long-term weather predictions?

Sandi Duncan: The interesting thing about the weather is that no on can predict it with 100 percent accuracy, even if you use a satellite or radar. So even though some may poo poo our prediction formula, we do pretty well – we have 80 to 85 percent accuracy. To me, it’s kind of rewarding to work in this day and age with something we can’t entirely plan and control. Our weather formula actually dates back to 1818; it’s a mathematical and astronomical formula that takes things like sun spot activity, the position of the planet, and a variety of other formulas into consideration. It’s only known by one person, our weather calculator, Caleb Weatherbee. It’s a pseudonym — he doesn’t like to give away his identity.

But as you mentioned, the last few years have been crazy and thrown us a curveball. We don’t say we can take the place of your local meteorologist, but we offer people a good idea and a planning tool. We still get lots of calls from brides-to-be or their parents, or people planning winter vacations, and we have film producers from California call when they’re [planning] location shoots.

MF: So how does one end up being the Farmers’ Almanac weather calculator?

SD: Caleb has been here about 20 years — he’s only our seventh weather prognosticator in 196 years. So you get longevity and job security with the position. [Laughs.] He’d always been a fan of astronomy and the weather and the Almanac, and he fell into it years ago.

‘Caleb Weatherbee has been here about 20 years — he’s only our seventh weather prognosticator in 196 years. So you get longevity and job security with the position.’

MF: There’s a perception of the Almanac as this quirky, old-timey curiosity. So how do you adapt it for modern times without compromising the things that have made it unique?

SD: One of the things in the upcoming 2014 edition, which is going to the printer as we speak, is that it’s not just your grandparents’ almanac anymore. Because of some current trends in the world, to live more organically, more sustainably, and independent from a lot of chemicals [in the environment], we’ve thrived in the past several years. People want to get back to basics. The younger generation is looking to the almanac for those ideas, like how to can your own vegetables. The majority of our readers are probably 40 to 50, but there’s a great number from 30 to 40. Being online allows us to generate interest in the younger generation. The demographic tends to be a little more skewed towards women than men, but we try hard to be a publication for every member of the family.

MF: So how do you do that?

SD: It’s interesting because the almanac has its staple categories like astronomy, weather, gardening, and Best Days, like the best times to look at a meteor shower. So those stay every year, though of course we update them. But we also have healthy living advice and living natural advice. There’s always been wisdom, and we’ve tried to put in cute jokes that won’t offend anyone. And then there’s gardening stories. A lot of times, too, we’ve done human interest campaigns, like we wanted to stop doctor’s office waits, so we had cards where if people had to wait more than 15 minutes they could present a card asking how come. We’ve got a good one scheduled for 2014 but I can’t reveal it yet. With the grassroots campaigns there’s nothing political; in the 1800s we had one saying Congress talks too much, but we stay away from politics. Many years ago we tried to move Thanksgiving to October, and people were horrified. But Christmas and Thanksgiving are so close together, and it’s supposed to be a celebration of the harvest, and in November the harvest is long gone.

MF: So how do you come up with the Best Days? Like how do you know when the best day to dig post holes or wax wooden floors (both June 26) is?

SD: It’s kind of funny; we always say that we try to be more astronomically than astrologically oriented. There’s a formula — I don’t calculate it, but it’s based on moon phases. Astrologically speaking, many people believe that the moon has an impact on a variety of things you do on a daily basis. It’s based on tradition and moon lore. One that people follow a lot is the best days to cut your hair: many people believe the moon has a pull on your hair. One thing we don’t list is the best day to schedule surgery. We say that the best day is when your doctor says so.

MF: You must get some pretty interesting calls about the best days to do certain things.

SD: We get some really crazy calls. When I first started working at the company I had someone call with a very southern accent and ask when the best day was to castrate a bull. I thought it was a joke, but it wasn’t. There really is a best day. We had a lawyer call to see when the moon was full because it could help his case. And we do have some crazy inquiries about the best day to have surgery — in this day and age we don’t give that advice.

MF: Do your readers give you a lot of input about what they’d like to see in the almanac, either in print or online?

SD: Yes. Years ago, it used to be by good old-fashioned mail, but we do get emails and got some input about the website. I think the cool thing online is that you know what’s popular. Every Monday there are five new stories that populate the website, and it’s almost like putting out a mini magazine online. You can tell if [the story] was popular or not, and we try to look at that. It’s interesting because we always say the almanac is a community, and online it’s even easier to see what people like and don’t like.

MF: A few years ago you had a series of TV specials — any plans to do more?

SD: We worked with an outside company who has since gone bankrupt; they did great shows. So as of right now, on our website we do have a few videos. We’re starting to do more. The almanac has grown quite a bit as we move towards the digital age. When we started, people said, ‘Wait a minute, how can you be online?’ But we have to keep up with the times. We have Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter accounts. We’re old and traditional, but new and up to date at the same time.

(Photo: dibytes/CC 2.0)