EXTRA! AN APPLE A DAY- AND NOT JUST FOR EATING! GETTING ALL SQUIRRELLY HAPPY HALLOWEEN RECIPES - The Old Farmer's Almanac
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EXTRA!
FROM THE OLD FARMER’S ALMANAC
AN APPLE A DAY—
AND NOT JUST FOR EATING!
GETTING ALL SQUIRRELLY
HAPPY HALLOWEEN RECIPES
AUTUMN ALL-STARS
OCTOBER 2022 PHOTO: CONSTANTGARDENER/GETTY IMAGES
s
ss CONTENTS
FEATURES
GARDENING
Autumn All-Stars WEATHER
FOOD FORECASTS
Happy Halloween How We Make
Recipes Our Predictions
FOLKLORE October U.S. and
Getting All Canadian Weather
Squirrelly Forecasts
LIVING NATURALLY Weather Update
An Apple a Day—
and Not Just for DEPARTMENTS WIT
Humor Me
Eating! CALENDAR Grins and groans
October Holidays, from the Almanac
Full Moon Names,
and More WHAT’S NEXT
See what we have
ASTROLOGY
in store for our
Best Days to
November issue!
Do Things
Gardening by the
Moon’s Sign
ASTRONOMY
Sky Map for October
FOLLOW US:
s
ss CALENDAR
october
Holidays, Full Moon Names, and More
october’s birthstones:
opal and tourmaline
• Gem-quality opals are known for
their play of color, caused by the
diffraction of light, and are available
in black, fire, white, and other types.
These gems symbolize hope, purity,
faithfulness, and confidence. Opal
necklaces once were worn to repel evil
and to protect eyesight.
• Tourmaline, an alternate October
birthstone, comes in a kaleidoscope
of colors and was once confused with
other gems. It symbolizes inspiration.
Eye on the Sky
OCTOBER’S FULL
Holiday Happenings MOON NAMES
Oct. 3: Child Health Day Hunter’s Moon, Migrating Moon,
Oct. 4: Yom Kippur begins at sundown Falling Leaves Moon
Oct. 9: Leif Eriksson Day MOON PHASES
Oct. 10: Columbus Day, observed First Quarter: Oct. 2, 8:14 p.m. EDT
Oct. 10: Indigenous Peoples’ Day Full Moon: Oct. 9, 4:55 p.m. EDT
Oct. 10: Thanksgiving Day (Canada) Last Quarter: Oct. 17, 1:15 p.m. EDT
Oct. 12: National Farmer’s Day New Moon: Oct. 25, 6:49 a.m. EDT
Oct. 24: United Nations Day
Oct. 31: Halloween TAP FOR MORE ABOUT MOON PHASES
TAP FOR MORE ABOUT OCTOBER’S
Get ready for 2023! Order your calendars at FULL MOON
Almanac.com/Shop.
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ss ASTROLOGY
BEST DAYS TO DO THINGS
These October dates, deemed to be propitious in astrology, are based on
the astrological passage of the Moon. However, consider all indicators
before making any major decisions. –Celeste Longacre
PERSONAL Cut hair to discourage growth:
11, 12
Advertise to sell: 2, 3, 26
Cut hair to encourage growth: 6, 7
Ask for a loan: 11, 12
Entertain: 18, 19
Begin diet to gain weight: 8, 26
Get married: 23, 24
Begin diet to lose weight: 12, 22
Have dental care: 20–22
Buy a home: 6, 7, 26
Move (house/household): 13, 14
Color hair: 11, 12
PHOTO: PIXABAY
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ss ASTROLOGY
Perm hair: 4, 5, 31 Set posts or pour concrete: 2, 3,
Quit smoking: 12, 22 29, 30
Straighten hair: 1, 27, 28
IN THE GARDEN
Travel for pleasure: 18, 19
Destroy pests and weeds: 8–10
Wean children: 12, 22
Graft or pollinate: 15–17
AROUND THE HOUSE Harvest aboveground crops: 2, 3
Bake: 15–17 Harvest belowground crops: 20–22
Brew: 25, 26 Mow to promote growth: 8, 9
Can, pickle, or make sauerkraut: Mow to slow growth: 11, 12
15–17 Pick fruit: 20–22
Demolish: 25, 26 Plant aboveground crops: 6, 7
Dry fruit, vegetables, or meat: 18, 19 Plant belowground crops: 15–17
End projects: 24 Prune to discourage growth: 18, 19
Lay shingles: 18, 19 Prune to encourage growth: 27, 28
Make jams or jellies: 6, 7
Paint: 23, 24 ON THE FARM
Start projects: 26 Breed animals: 25, 26
Wash floors: 6, 7 Castrate animals: 4, 5, 31
Wash windows: 8–10 Cut hay: 8–10
Purchase animals: 15–17
OUTDOORS Set eggs: 4, 5, 13, 14
Begin logging: 2, 3, 29, 30 Slaughter livestock: 25, 26
Go camping: 1, 27, 28 Wean animals: 12, 22
Go fishing: 1–9, 25–31
Take your pick!
2023 Almanac Calendars
are Now Available!
ORDER NOW!
s
ss ASTROLOGY
gardening by the moon’s sign
Use the October dates shown in the Moon’s Astrological Place
calendar below to find the best days for the following garden tasks:
TAP FOR PLANT, TRANSPLANT, AND GRAFT: Cancer, Scorpio, Pisces, or Taurus
MERCURY IN
+ RETROGRADE HARVEST: Aries, Leo, Sagittarius, Gemini, or Aquarius
DATES
BUILD/FIX FENCES OR GARDEN BEDS: Capricorn
TAP FOR
OCTOBER CONTROL INSECT PESTS, PLOW, AND WEED: Aries, Gemini, Leo,
MOON Sagittarius, or Aquarius
PHASES
PRUNE: Aries, Leo, or Sagittarius. During a waxing Moon, pruning
encourages growth; during a waning Moon, it discourages growth.
THE MOON’S ASTROLOGICAL PLACE IN OCTOBER
1 Sagittarius 9 Aries 17 Cancer 25 Scorpio
2 Capricorn 10 Aries 18 Leo 26 Scorpio
3 Capricorn 11 Taurus 19 Leo 27 Sagittarius
4 Aquarius 12 Taurus 20 Virgo 28 Sagittarius
5 Aquarius 13 Gemini 21 Virgo 29 Capricorn
6 Pisces 14 Gemini 22 Virgo 30 Capricorn
7 Pisces 15 Cancer 23 Libra 31 Aquarius
8 Aries 16 Cancer 24 Libra
PHOTO: PIXABAY
MERCURY IN RETROGRADE
Sometimes the other planets appear to
be traveling backward through the zo-
diac; this is an illusion. We call this illu-
sion retrograde motion.
Mercury’s retrograde periods can
cause our plans to go awry. However, this
is an excellent time to reflect on the past.
Intuition is high during these periods,
and coincidences can be extraordinary.
When Mercury is retrograde, remain
flexible, allow extra time for travel, and
avoid signing contracts. Review proj-
ects and plans at these times, but wait
until Mercury is direct again to make
any final decisions.
Mercury’s remaining 2022 retrograde
periods: September 9–October 1 and
December 28–(January 18, 2023).
–Celeste Longacre
Celebrating its 45th anniversar in 2022,
the best-selling Old Farmer’s Almanac
Gardening Calendar features beautiful
art, helpful tips, insightful quotes, and
an easy-to-use grid with holidays and
Moon phases. Order your 2023 calendar
today at Almanac.com/Shop.
s
ss ASTRONOMY
Constellations, Then and Now
A
s human beings, it is in our nature to seek order from
chaos, to find patterns even where none exist. It’s no
surprise, then, that no matter how far back we look into
TAP TO GET recorded history, we find ancient peoples drawing sky maps
A PRINTABLE and inventing names for what they observed.
OCTOBER
SKY MAP Inevitably, ancient observers of the sky saw patterns in the
stars—patterns that we now call “constellations.” Beginning
TAP TO at least 7,000 years ago, early astronomers were documenting
FOLLOW
OHIOAN JEFF
mythological creatures, supernatural beings—even ordinary
DETRAY’S SKY tools and weapons—all composed of stars. Over time, the
ADVENTURES names and even patterns of most constellations have changed
as different cultures have applied their own mythology to
the night sky. In fact, the 88 constellations that we recognize
today were not agreed upon until the 20th century.
For most of recorded history, only the brightest or most
distinctive star patterns were recognized as constellations. For
millennia, some parts of the sky belonged to no constellation
s ss ASTRONOMY at all. This was still the case in the 2nd century when Greek-Roman astronomer Claudius Ptolemy produced one of history’s most important scientific writings, the Almagest. This colossal work comprised 13 books, each devoted to a different aspect of astronomy. Books VII and VIII concerned the stars and identified 48 constellations. Over the next many centuries, astronomers slowly invented additional constellations from stars that Ptolemy had failed to include in his original 48. This month’s sky map shows two of them. In 1612, Dutch astronomer Petrus Plancius created the constellation Camelopardalis, the Giraffe, from a jumble of faint stars between Ursa Major and Perseus. The constellation Lacerta, the Lizard, was invented in 1690 by Polish astronomer Johannes Hevelius from otherwise unassigned stars between Cepheus and Pegasus. A prolific constellation inventor, Hevelius created seven new constellations where none had existed before. The star pattern of Camelopardalis looks nothing like its namesake, but the stars of Lacerta can at least be imagined as a reptile of some sort. Throughout the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries, new constellations were gradually invented to fill in those parts of the sky that had none. Occasionally, there were conflicts, such as when Edmund Halley (of Halley’s Comet fame) proposed a new constellation to honor King Charles II of England. Other astronomers rejected the idea of naming constellations for contemporary persons, so Charles’s constellation never came to be. The haphazard nature of constellations was on the agenda of the newly formed International Astronomical Union (IAU) at its first General Assembly in 1922. The assembled delegates decided that the sky would be divided into exactly 88 constellations and that their boundaries would be drawn so that every part of the sky lay within a constellation. No more unassigned stars! All but one of Ptolemy’s ancient 48 constellations made the IAU’s modern list of 88. Because every point on the sky must lie within a constellation, the boundaries of some constellations resemble a gerrymandered Congressional district. Note the very convoluted outline of Camelopardalis on our sky map. The 88 IAU constellations are still in use today. The items highlighted in green on our sky map are known as “asterisms.” These are distinctive (but unofficial) star patterns that lie within constellations. When getting your bearings under the stars, it’s often easiest to first spot an asterism and then use it as a guide to finding the parent constellation. –Jeff DeTray
GARDENING
Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’
Autumn All-Stars
PHOTO: SEVEN75/GET T Y IMAGESGARDENING
T
here are so rich orange/bronze shades (blue, prized at any time,
many glorious in autumn, followed by is at a premium in fall)—
ornamental dark seed heads that but it’s not child’s play.
plants at this time of year; stand sentinel in the Monkshood is poisonous.
more should find their way snow-covered landscape Suited for partial shade,
into plantings that we can or can be used in dried monkshood works nicely
enjoy just by looking out arrangements. Although on the eastern edge of
the window and not having sedums can be slow to a deciduous woodland.
to brave the chilly air. multiply, established Although the sedum and
We set out to discover plantings are quite long- burnet become quite
plants for the home lived and self-grooming. substantial at maturity,
landscape that peak late This fall classic grows to you’ll need more
in the year. On behalf about 2 feet tall. monkshood plants for a
of beginners and cold- A newer, similar border good effect because each
climate gardeners, we sedum, ‘Matrona’, is also one puts up only a few
sought plants that are worth consideration. It’s flowering stems.
reasonably vigorous, taller and has a longer What about hardy
available, and hardy. bloom time. Another chrysanthemums? These
Here’s a selection of is Canadian burnet flower in October, and
perennials that can hold (Sanguisorba canadensis), you buy them as rooted
their own in the garden a large, showy, back-of- cuttings in spring, not
when days grow short. the-border affair, 3 to 6 potted plants in fall. Two
These first three feet tall, with white “bottle good ones are ‘Venus’,
stalwarts all have brush” flowers that add a which is pink with a white
handsome summer pop of color and a form eye zone, and ‘Sheffield’, a
foliage, late bloom, a that contrasts with all of salmon-pink single; both
USDA Zone 3 rating— the daisies—the asters, grow to 3 feet tall and are
and work well together. sunflowers, dahlias, and nice in borders.
Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ is mums so prevalent in Now for something
one of the best for fall— autumn. really different: Lycoris
and it really is a four- A little smaller, late squamigera puts up
season plant. It has milky azure monkshood beautiful, fragrant, pastel-
green succulent leaves and (Aconitum carmichaelii) pink lilies in fall. Formed
stems in spring, followed fits the setting for Alice from bulbs planted 5
by flat pink flower heads in Wonderland—with inches deep in spring,
in summer; these turn its broody blue blooms lycoris produces narrowGARDENING
Boltonia asteroides
‘Snowbank’
leaves that die back in daisylike flowers that go hardy to Zone 3. For blue,
early summer. Then— right through the first choose the hybrid Aster
surprise—2- to 3-foot-tall frosts. This 4-foot cousin x frikartii ‘Mönch’, 2 to
stems rise up in autumn. of true asters is a North 3 feet tall and thankfully
Lycoris will naturalize; American native that not as rangy or prone to
gardeners in cold Zone doesn’t need staking and mildew as so many other
4 have been successful is beautiful with anything asters. ‘Wunder von Stäfa’
with it. Also known as variegated or blue. is taller and more open
the autumn amaryllis, Another tall, white in habit, with dramatic
lycoris often waits until favorite is black cohosh, violet-blue flowers and
its second year to bloom snakeroot, or bugbane yellow centers, and just
and deeply resents being (Actaea racemosa); as lovely. Hardy to about
moved. aesthetically similar to Zone 5, it benefits from
Know someone growing burnet, it needs more a light mulch over the
Boltonia asteroides? Ask moisture and some shade. crown—or even replanting
for a bit of it in spring, ‘Hillside Black Beauty’ has each spring if you love
when it’s easy to divide. purple-bronze leaves and them and lose them.
Perhaps, you can hope, it a candelabra of flowers Autumn doesn’t have to
will be ‘Snowbank’, with that can reach 3 to 5 feet be just golds and reds and
its gray-green foliage tall. Boltonia and black oranges.
and blizzard of small cohosh should both prove –Almanac editors
PHOTO: ANNIE’S ANNUALSFOOD
Happy Halloween
Recipes
When Halloween comes around, most people think first of the
costumes. Not us! We immediately conjure up homemade Halloween
treats to share with our friends, family, and neighbors.
PHOTO: KATHY CLARK/SHUTTERSTOCKFOOD
Apple
Monsters
PHOTO: MARGO LETOURNEAUFOOD
APPLE MONSTERS
apples
slivered almonds
miniature marshmallows
special equipment: toothpicks
Quarter the apples. On the skin side, cut
out a wedge, without slicing through to the
core. Eat the wedges, if desired. Push almond
slivers into the top and bottom portions of
the wedge cuts.
Break some toothpicks in half and stick two
halves into the top of each apple section. Push
a marshmallow onto each toothpick.
Makes 4 per apple.
PHOTO: MARGO LETOURNEAUFOOD
Caramel
Popcorn
Balls
PHOTO: KATHY CLARK/SHUTTERSTOCKFOOD
CARAMEL POPCORN BALLS
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon white or apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) salted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 cups popped popcorn
Grease a large bowl with butter or cooking spray.
In a large, heavy saucepan, combine sugar, corn syrup,
vinegar, and salt. Bring to a boil and stir in butter.
Reduce heat to medium-low and boil gently for 3
minutes, or until light golden brown, stirring often.
Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
Put popcorn into prepared bowl. Pour syrup mixture
over popcorn and stir until popcorn is evenly coated.
As soon as mixture is cool enough to handle, grease
your hands and shape popcorn into 2- to 3-inch balls.
When balls are cool, wrap in plastic or wax paper.
Makes 12 to 14 balls.
Looking for more great recipes? Get a copy of our best-selling
cookbook with recipes from you, our readers. The Old Farmer’s
Almanac Readers’ Best Recipes is filled with tried-and-true
recipes that keep folks coming back for more, plus the stories
behind them! Store.almanac.com/cookbook-readers-best-recipes/
PHOTO: KATHY CLARK/SHUTTERSTOCKFOOD
Candy
Apples
PHOTO: PIXABAYFOOD
CANDY APPLES
9 apples
3 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
red food coloring
special equipment: 9 wooden pop sticks or skewers
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Wash and dry apples. Make sure that apples are
completely dry, then chill in refrigerator.
Remove apple stems and insert pop sticks into stem
end of apple.
In a deep saucepan, combine sugar, cream of tartar,
salt, and 1 cup of water. Add enough food coloring
to get your desired color. Cook over medium heat,
stirring until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to
medium-high and bring to a full rolling boil without
stirring for 8 to 9 minutes. (On a candy thermometer,
syrup registers 290°F.) A small amount of syrup
dropped into cold water should form hard threads.
Remove from heat and immediately dip apples. Twirl
to cover evenly, holding apple over pan to catch
drips. Place, stick up, onto prepared baking sheet and
allow to harden for 10 minutes.
Serve immediately or refrigerate and eat within 2 days.
Makes 9 apples.
PHOTO: PIXABAYWhich Almanac do you prefer?
We’re happy to offer you this handy yellow
book in both hardcover and soft cover!
ORDER NOW!FOLKLORE
Getting All
Squirrelly
PHOTO: SUEFELDBERG/GETTY IMAGESFOLKLORE
A
t this time of weather as warm as About 10 days ago,
year, we see warm can be. a tremendous drove
squirrels busily of gray squirrels,
dashing hither and The problem, of numbering hundreds
yon, jumping from tree course, has always of thousands, suddenly
to tree, and generally been to count the nuts made their appearance
frolicking blissfully. gathered by an individual on the Meramac [sic]
Like a lot of people, we squirrel and then to [River], covering the trees
begin to wonder if all of judge this amount in and water like a pall.
their activity is a clue to comparison with the Thousands of them were
the upcoming winter’s number of nuts gathered afterwards found dead
weather. Here’s what we by the same squirrel in the river and on the
found when we delved during the previous fall. ground.
into our archives . . . and Latch onto a lazy or sick They crossed the
we’re still wondering. squirrel in either year, for Mississippi at that point
The number of nuts instance, and the entire and worked their way
gathered by squirrels in forecast is skewed. down the river, until
the fall is a commonly The wise observer, it on Wednesday they
used winter indicator. seems, may be better off reached Cape Girardue
Many nuts, tough in counting the squirrels [sic], crossing the river
winter. Thus, these age- and not their quarry. at that point in countless
old proverbs . . . One adage suggests . . . myriads. The citizens
turned out en masse
When squirrels early When squirrels are scarce and killed them by the
start to hoard, winter in autumn, expect a cold hundreds. Every tree
will pierce us like a winter. and bush in that vicinity
sword. swarmed with them
Squirrels gathering nuts However, squirrel until night when they
in a flurry will cause abundance, not scarcity, all disappeared, and
snow to gather in a may in fact hold the clue. have not been heard
hurry. The following account from since. Their route
If squirrels stash their was originally published was marked as by a
nuts high in the trees, in the St. Louis Express devastating storm. Trees
the snow will be deep. and reprinted in the were girdled, and fields
When the squirrel eats Corpus Christi Ranchero destroyed. Old French
them [nuts] on a tree, on November 5, 1859: settlers predict a veryFOLKLORE
severe winter, as it was the 1984 Almanac Essay squirrel was desperately
noticed in 1834 and ’52 Contest for which the trying all of his acrobatic
that immense droves topic was “The Tallest gyrations in an effort to
of squirrels suddenly Tale I Ever Heard”— reach the nuts. Just as he
made their appearance, suggests that squirrels grabbed them, he lost his
followed by intensely may know something grip and fell into the water.
severe weather. about when to go fishing: Instantly the biggest fish
the man had ever seen
So, you can see we A man was fishing at a lunged up and swallowed
have come to no firm lake. His eye caught a the squirrel. The lake got
conclusions about gray squirrel in the trees calm again. Then the big
squirrels’ ability to near the shore. The tree fish jumped up out of the
divine the weather. But limbs hung over the lake. water and put the two
a long-lost essay—the In the lake was a stump nuts back on the stump.
second-prize winner in with two nuts on it. The –Almanac editors
PHOTO: PIX ABAYL I V I N G N AT U R A L LY
An Apple a Day—and
Not Just for Eating!
PHOTO: PIXABAYL I V I N G N AT U R A L LY
I
t’s apple season pandowdies. eating apples and apple
again! Here Some households also products may help to
are some of make their own cider prevent cardiovascular
the numerous health (including hard cider, diseases, Alzheimer’s,
benefits of apples, as well the drink of choice of asthma, allergies,
as some of their other the colonial ancestors diabetes, some cancers,
interesting uses! of some of us), cider and osteoporosis, as
At our farm, we don’t vinegar, pectin, and well as help with weight
grow tree fruit, but we “leather.” management.
do buy and enjoy a lot Apples contain
of local apples from late HEALTH BENEFITS unique combinations
September through the OF APPLES of phytocompounds,
winter months. Science is providing which apple trees
In seasons when the new relevance for the produce to help combat
Baldwins or Northern old adage, “An apple environmental stresses
Spy apples are abundant, a day keeps the doctor such as diseases and
I generally buy a bushel away.” A study published ultraviolet radiation.
to stash in the root in the British Medical When we eat apples,
cellar, alongside the Journal comparing some of these anti-
homegrown cabbages cardiovascular mortality inflammatory and
and carrots. (They store rates between people antioxidant compounds
best in a cold, humid taking statin drugs and may help to protect our
environment.) those eating an apple a own organs and tissues.
We eat apples fresh, day concluded, “We find
baked (stuffed with that [the] 150-year-old WHAT ELSE CAN
walnuts and drizzled proverb is able to match APPLES DO?
with honey and a little modern medicine and is Fresh apples have uses
cinnamon), in sauce(s), likely to have fewer side around the house, too.
in poultry stuffings, cut effects.” Use them to . . .
up and sautéed as a side A growing body of • Ripen other fruit:
dish, and in pies and research suggests that Fresh apples give off
Science is providing new relevance for the old
adage, “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”L I V I N G N AT U R A L LY
ethylene gas, which will in a bag or container
TAP FOR HOW TO MAKE
speed up the ripening along with a cut apple. SHRUNKEN APPLE HEADS
of other fruit. Just set Additionally, using apple
unripe pears, tomatoes, cider in place of water with warm water.
or bananas in a bowl or can give your baked Anti-inflammatory
paper bag with a couple goods a richer apple compounds in the apple
of apples, and the unripe taste. peel help to reduce
fruit will ripen more • Soften a lump of inflammation.
quickly than they would hardened brown sugar:
otherwise. Because of the • Make a spooky
Just tuck a piece of cut apple head: Great for
ethylene gas, it’s a good apple in a sealed bag
idea not to store apples Halloween, shrunken
with the brown sugar apple heads are an
in your refrigerator or in for a few hours, and it
the same storage space as easy and creepy way to
will soften up enough to decorate! Plus, making
potatoes, as they tend to break apart.
make the potatoes sprout them is a fun activity
earlier. • Reduce inflammation: for kids.
Grate the peel of an –Margaret Boyles
• Keep baked goods apple into a bowl, then
from drying out: Cakes, apply the grated peel TAP TO READ MORE OF
muffins, and homemade to your skin. Let it sit MARGARET BOYLES’S
breads will stay moist POSTS IN HER “LIVING
for about 15 minutes NATURALLY” BLOG
longer if you store them before washing it off
PHOTO: MARGARET BOYLESEverything you need to
stay on track in 2023!
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ss W E AT H E R F O R EC A S TS
IF IN THE OCTOBER FALL OF LEAVES MANY WITHER AND HANG ON
THE BOUGHS, IT BETOKENS A FROSTY WINTER AND MUCH SNOW.
How We Make Our predictions
We derive our weather forecasts from a secret formula
that was devised by the founder of this Almanac, Robert B.
Thomas, in 1792. Thomas believed that weather on Earth
was influenced by sunspots, which are magnetic storms on
the surface of the Sun.
Over the years, we have refined and enhanced this for-
mula with state-of-the-art technology and modern scien-
tific calculations. We employ three scientific disciplines to
make our long-range predictions: solar science, the study of
TAP TO FIND sunspots and other solar activity; climatology, the study of
OUT THE
WEATHER
prevailing weather patterns; and meteorology, the study of
HISTORY OF the atmosphere. We predict weather trends and events by
THE DAY comparing solar patterns and historical weather conditions
LOVE ALL
with current solar activity.
THINGS Our forecasts emphasize temperature and precipitation de-
WEATHER? viations from averages, or normals. These are based on 30-year
TAP FOR THE statistical averages prepared by government meteorological
WEATHER
FOLKLORE agencies and updated every 10 years. Our forecasts are based
OF THE DAY on the tabulations that span the period 1991 through 2020.
We believe that nothing in the universe happens haphaz-
ardly, that there is a cause-and-effect pattern to all phenom-
ena. However, although neither we nor any other forecast-
ers have as yet gained sufficient insight into the mysteries of
the universe to predict the weather with total accuracy, our
results are almost always very close to our traditional claim
of 80 percent.
CELSIUS–FAHRENHEIT TABLE
PHOTO: PIXABAYs
ss W E AT H E R F O R EC A S TS
U.S. Weather Regions
15
9 1
12
13
6
3
2
10
16
7
14 4
8
11
5
17
18
canadian Weather Regions CLICK HERE TO
FIND OCTOBER
WEATHER
PREDICTIONS
FOR THE U.S.
AND CANADIAN
6 REGIONS
Y.T.
NUNAVUT
7 N.W.T.
N.L.
B.C.
ALTA. QUE.
SASK. MAN.
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ONT. P.E.I.
Southern Atlantic
5 British 2 Canada
Southern N.B.
Columbia 4 The Prairies 3 Southern
Ontario
Quebec
N.S.s
ss W E AT H E R U P DAT E
Weather Treats and Tricks
O
ctober 3 marks Child Health Day England and the mid-Atlantic states
across the U.S., so make sure that westward across the Ohio Valley and
your children have their jackets Great Lakes, as well as into the Pacific
and umbrellas readily at hand in most Northwest. Folks in Alaska will need
areas east of the Mississippi, as it will to plan for snowy and cold conditions.
be rainy and cool. The kids may even Canada’s east and west coasts will be
need hats, gloves, and boots in the rainy, but otherwise the weather will
northern Plains and Upper Midwest, be sunny and dry for traveling.
as snow is expected there. Sunshine Alaska Day, October 18, commem-
and sunscreen for the youngsters will orates the transfer of the land that
be the rule in Florida, from Arizona would become our 49th state from
into southern California, and across Russia to the United States in 1867.
central and eastern Hawaii. Folks in The Last Frontier on this day
On October 10—Columbus Day will find the weather mild, with rain
and Indigenous Peoples’ Day in and snow showers.
the U.S. and Thanksgiving Day in October 28 is Nevada Day, which
Canada—skies will be sunny and celebrates the entrance of the 36th
dry for observances across most state into the Union on October 31,
of the two nations. Still, rain could 1864. Those heading out and about for
dampen outdoor plans from New entertainment will need to keep the
PHOTO: PIX ABAYs ss W E AT H E R U P DAT E jacket and the umbrella handy, as it Quebec, southern British Columbia, will be cool with a few showers around. and the Northwest Territories and Halloween will feature spookily generally below normal in most rainy conditions, with trick-or-treaters other areas. A hurricane may impact in need of raincoats from the Northeast Atlantic Canada around the middle and mid-Atlantic states across the of the month. Appalachians, through the Heartland Looking ahead, the La Niña that and the Upper Midwest, from the has been in place for the past 2 Rockies to the West Coast, and across years could persist throughout the much of Hawaii. Meanwhile, a tropical upcoming winter; such conditions storm may play a big trick, with wind rarely last for three consecutive and heavy rain across the Deep South. winters, which has happened only The kids will have dry conditions for twice since 1950. The Atlantic gathering treats from the High Plains Multi-Decadal Oscillation (AMO) through Texas. Across Canada, trick- remains in a warm phase, while the or-treaters will enjoy dry and mild Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) is conditions in Atlantic Canada and the currently in a negative, or cool phase. western Prairies, while the weather will Oscillations are linked to ocean– be mild with rain showers across much atmosphere patterns that influence of the rest of the country. the weather over periods of weeks to October temperatures will be years. cooler than normal in Florida, the Sunspot activity has dramatically Southeast, and the Deep South but increased during the past 6 months warmer than normal elsewhere in and now is at its highest level since the U.S. Precipitation will be above late 2014. The relationship between average from Maine to Georgia and increased solar activity and the westward through the Appalachians, future phase of the stratospheric with a tropical storm and heavy rain winds near the equator (known as possible across the Deep South late the QBO) could lead to the polar in the month. It will be drier than vortex becoming displaced from normal in most other locations. the North Pole. This would open the In Canada, October temperatures door for some cold shots across the will be warmer than normal across eastern U.S. and Canada this winter. much of the country. Precipitation –Bob Smerbeck and Brian Thompson, will be above normal in southern Old Farmer’s Almanac meteorologists
s
ss WIT
humor me
grins and groans from the almanac
The Eye of the should never paint lived in the suburbs
Beholder anything but birds.” became confidential
An artist in New Jersey “They’re angels,” said and exhibited a string
was showing her lady the artist. tied around a finger.
friend around the “I don’t dare to go
studio. Strung Out home,” he explained.
“Absolutely perfect!” Two men met on “There’s something
exclaimed the visitor, the city street in the my wife told me to
looking at a painting. evening and had a do, without fail, and
“These ostriches are number of drinks to make sure that I
simply superb! You together. The one who wouldn’t forget, she
ILLUSTR ATION: DR ANTE/GET T Y IMAGESs
ss WIT
tied this string around Point of View promoter said, “I will
my finger. But, for At a reception in give you a coupon, and
the life of me, I can’t Boston, a lady who when you have 3,000
remember what the had been reading up of them, you may bring
thing was that I am on health mistook the coupons to me and
supposed to do. And I Attorney Williams for exchange them for a
don’t dare to go home!” his brother, who was a grand piano.”
A few days later, doctor. Nat sniffed at the
the two men met “Tell me,” she said cigar, pinched it gently,
again, this time in the confidentially. “Is it and then replied: “If I
afternoon. better to lie on the right smoked 3,000 of these,
“Well,” the one side or the left?” I think I would need a
asked, “did you finally “Madam,” replied the harp instead of a grand
remember what that lawyer, “if one is on the piano.”
string was to remind right side, it should not There was a burst of
you of?” be necessary to lie at all.” laughter in which the
The other showed dour Englishman did
great gloom in his not join, until suddenly
expression, as he
Harping on the he exploded with
replied: Wrong Note merriment.
“I didn’t go home Nat Goodwin was at a “I see the point!”
until the next night, just club with an English he exclaimed. “Being
because I was scared, friend and became an actor and traveling
and then my wife told the center of an around the country a
me what the string appreciative group. great deal, you would
was for, all right—she A cigar man find a harp so much
certainly did!” approached the more convenient to
There was a note of comedian and offered carry.”
pain in his voice. him a cigar, saying that “Exactly!” said Nat—
“The string was to it was a new product to another round of
remind me to be sure with a new promotion. laughs paid for by his
to come home early.” “With each cigar, friend.
you understand,” thes
ss
WHAT’S NEXT
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House—how the our Sky Map
holidays, and
rocking chair
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GARDENING LIVING
The Case for Vine- FOOD NATURALLY
Cooling Your Home Give Thanks for Stay Healthy
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Plus: Weather Update • U.S. and Canadian Weather Forecasts •
Gardening by the Moon’s Sign • Best Days to Do Things •
• Humor • and much more in the November EXTRA!
CELEBRATING THE ALMANAC’S 231ST YEAR!You can also read
