A publication with a 208-year history, which farmers, gardeners, and other individuals interested in weather forecasting have depended on for advice, will cease its publication.
TL;DR
- Farmers' Almanac will end publication after 208 years, with the 2026 edition being the last.
- The decision is attributed to financial challenges in a "chaotic media environment."
- The publication, established in Maine in 1818, offered weather forecasts and gardening advice.
- Online access will cease next month; readership had grown to include urban gardeners.
Farmers’ Almanac said Thursday that its 2026 edition will be its last, citing the growing financial challenges of producing and distributing the book in today’s “chaotic media environment.” Access to the online version will cease next month.
Established in Maine, and distinct from the even more venerable Old Farmer’s Almanac of neighboring New Hampshire, this publication began printing in 1818. For generations, it has relied on a proprietary method, incorporating sunspots, celestial alignments, and lunar phases, to produce extended weather predictions.
In addition to gardening advice, fun facts, humor, and natural remedies such as catnip for pain relief or elderberry syrup for immune support, the almanac is best known for its weather predictions.
“It is with a heavy heart that we share the end of what has not only been an annual tradition in millions of homes and hearths for hundreds of years, but also a way of life, an inspiration for many who realize the wisdom of generations past is the key to the generations of the future,” Editor Sandi Duncan said in a statement.
The editor of Farmers’ Almanac stated in 2017, when the publication reported a circulation of 2.1 million across North America, that it was attracting a growing readership from individuals concerned with food sourcing and those cultivating their own produce at home.
The publication's readership, largely urban, led to its cover art showcasing both towering skyscrapers and a rustic old farmhouse.