A 208-year-old publication that farmers, gardeners and others keen to predict the weather have relied on for guidance will be publishing for the final time.

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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.

The Maine-based publication, not to be confused with the even older Old Farmer’s Almanac in neighboring New Hampshire, was first printed in 1818. For centuries it’s used a secret formula based on sunspots, planetary positions and lunar cycles to generate long-range weather forecasts.

The almanac also contains gardening tips, trivia, jokes and natural remedies, like catnip as a pain reliever or elderberry syrup as an immune booster. But its weather forecasts make the most headlines.

Both publications were among hundreds of almanacs that served a nation of farmers over two centuries ago. Most were regional publications and no longer exist.

“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.

Readers, saddened to hear the news, posted online about how they used it in their families for generations as a guide to help them plant gardens and follow the weather.

In 2017, when Farmers’ Almanac reported a circulation of 2.1 million in North America, its editor said it was gaining new readers among people interested in where their food came from and who were growing fresh produce in home gardens. It developed followers online and sent a weekly email to readers in addition to its printed editions.

Many of these readers lived in cities, prompting the publication to feature skyscrapers as well as an old farmhouse on its cover.

The Farmers’ Almanac was founded by David Young in New Jersey before moving to Maine in 1955. The Old Farmer’s Almanac is believed to be the oldest continually published periodical in North America.

Among Farmers’ Almanac articles from the past is one urging folks to remember “old-fashioned neighborhoodliness” in the face of newfangled technology like cars, daily mail and telephones in 1923. Editors urged readers in 1834 to abandon tobacco and in 1850 promoted the common bean leaf to combat bedbugs.

The almanac had some forward-thinking advice for women in 1876, telling them to learn skills to avoid being dependent on finding a husband. “It is better to be a woman than a wife, and do not degrade your sex by making your whole existence turn on the pivot of matrimony,” it counseled.

By COLLIN BINKLEY, AP Education Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — Cornell University has agreed to pay $60 million and accept the Trump administration’s interpretation of civil rights laws in order to restore federal funding and end investigations into the Ivy League school.

Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff announced the agreement on Friday, saying it upholds the university’s academic freedom while restoring more than $250 million in research funding that the government withheld amid investigations into alleged civil rights violations.

The university agreed to pay $30 million directly to the U.S. government along with another $30 million toward research that will support U.S. farmers.

“This agreement revives that partnership, while affirming the university’s commitment to the principles of academic freedom, independence, and institutional autonomy that, from our founding, have been integral to our excellence,” Kotlikoff said in a statement.

The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org.

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MANZANITA, Ore. (AP) — A woman was walking her dogs on an Oregon beach when she saw a small shark struggling.

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It was lucky timing for the salmon shark, which was suffocating in a low tide area near the shoreline.

“I was essentially nervous about touching it at all,” Colleen Dunn, wrote in a text message Wednesday. “I have three kids so I didn’t wanna put myself in a dangerous position.”

At first, she thought it was a baby great white.

Dunn called her husband at an office at Nehalem Bay State Park for advice, but got no answer. So, with her dogs waiting patiently, she grabbed the 3-foot shark by the tail and rushed it to deeper water while taking a video of it on her phone.

The shark was able to push water through its gills once again, and then swam out of view.

Dunn says she posted about the encounter last month on a local social media group, and nobody reported the shark washing back up on shore. She used to live in Hawaii and recently moved her family to Manzanita, Oregon, near the park where she saw the shark. The ocean and the creatures in it give her a sense of belonging, she said.

In this screenshot taken from video provided by Colleen Dunn, Dunn carries a beached salmon shark on an Oregon beach back into the ocean near Portland, Ore., Oct. 2025. (Colleen Dunn via AP)

“I’ve lived in other places across the Pacific, and the ocean has always been my grounding place. Being engaged with it, watching the tides, noticing the wildlife, even stepping in when a creature needs help keeps me present and humble,” Dunn said.

The race became about who belongs in New York—and who can afford to stay in it.

A group of Mamdani supporters, including tenant organizers, launching the “People’s Majority alliance,” ahead of Election Day in Sunset Park. (via the People’s Majority)

Housing, housing, housing. Poll after poll showed that it was the top issue on New York City voters’ minds when they went to the polls Tuesday.

Mayoral-elect Zohran Mamdani made the cost of living—and the cost of housing, which is New York City households’ biggest expense—the unshakable center of his campaign.

Mamdani, who will be the city’s first Muslim mayor and its youngest mayor in nearly a century, catapulted to the front of the race with his signature promise to freeze the rent for the city’s 2 million rent stabilized tenants, and tackle the cost of living crisis with free buses and universal childcare.

The race became about who belongs in New York—and who can afford to stay in it.

“Our greatness will be anything but abstract,” Mamdani said in his Election night victory speech in Brooklyn. “It will be felt by every rent-stabilized tenant who wakes up on the first of every month knowing the amount they’re going to pay hasn’t soared since the month before. It will be felt by each grandparent who can afford to stay in the home they have worked for.”

Voters who spoke to City Limits at the polls this week said that housing was top of mind. 

“There’s always a price increase every year. It’s not fair for the people who are already low-income, for families who are low-income, and they’re just doing their best to make enough for rent and then they also have utility bills and basic necessities that they need to care for,” said Karina Abreu Brito, 29, who was casting her ballot in Mott Haven. “I feel like that’s the most important thing right now, especially since we’re supposedly getting a colder winter.”

Four housing-related ballot measures, which mayoral-elect Mamdani supported (after much consternation), also passed Tuesday, potentially helping the new mayor facilitate his plans to build 200,000 affordable apartments over the next 10 years.

With additional reporting by Keke Grant-Floyd.

Here’s what else happened in housing this week—

ICYMI, from City Limits:

Here’s a closer look at how those housing-related ballot measures performed at the polls, and what they’ll do going forward.

Tenants, housing advocates and landlords react to Mamdani’s win, and the prospect of a rent freeze.

Speaking of a rent freeze: Mayor Eric Adams could make it harder for Mamdani to achieve if he stacks the Rent Guidelines Board with new members on his way out of office.

Coalition for the Homeless estimates that 40 percent of the city’s shelters for adults lack Wi-Fi. “Every step we need to take to get out of the shelter system involves using the internet to access resources, apply for jobs, and submit rental applications,” write Troy Walker and Reynaldo Medina.

ICYMI, from other local newsrooms:

The boiler that exploded and caused a partial building collapse at NYCHA’s Mitchel Houses last month was among dozens in public housing still under use despite expired permits, The City reports.

Eric Adams’ one-term stint as New York City mayor was consumed by scandal, but his housing agenda is expected to leave “a lasting legacy,” Gothamist writes.

Five pressing housing issues for the mayor elect, via the New York Times.

A group of rent stabilized tenants in a building owned by Pinnacle Group—which recently declared bankruptcy, sending dozens of properties to the auction block—want potential buyers to focus on long-overdue repairs, Next City reports.

To reach the reporter behind this story, contact Partick@citylimits.org. To reach the editor, contact Jeanmarie@citylimits.org

Want to republish this story? Find City Limits’ reprint policy here.

The post The Election’s Number One Issue, and What Else Happened This Week in Housing appeared first on City Limits.