Not to be confused with the Farmer's Almanac, which is the new kid on the block compared to the Old Farmer's Almanac, the Old Farmer's Almanac has, according to their website, been at this weather prediction game since 1792 (230 years).

The Farmer's Almanac is the relative newcomer, publishing their first almanac in 1818, the same year Illinois became a state.

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As We Know From Living Through Rockford's Varying Winters, Each Spring Can Be Very Different Than The Last One

Giving credit where credit is due, the Old Farmer's Almanac did a pretty good job of predicting what kind of winter Northern Illinois and the Rockford area would have between November of last year right up to now.

Here's what they said about our current winter (when they made their predictions months before):

Winter will be colder and drier than normal, with the coldest temperatures in mid- to late November, through most of December and January, and in early to mid-February. Snowfall will be near normal in most areas, although a few places south of the Lakes will have much-above-normal snowfall. The snowiest periods will be in late November, mid- and late December, early and mid- to late January, early to mid-February, and mid-March.

Like I said, they were pretty close to being right on the money for our area. But what about the coming Spring?

Redbud Lined Country Road-Carmi Illinois
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Rows of corn on a beautiful Spring afternoon in rural Illinois.
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The Old Farmer's Almanac Seems To Think Spring Around Here Is Going To Be Warm

Which, I don't mind adding, is perfectly fine with me. There comes a point when a man gets tired of a frozen butt and is ready for a warm up.

To bottom line things for you, the Old Farmer's Almanac says "April and May will be much warmer and slightly drier than normal."

To condense as much of their prediction as I can, the Rockford area should be expecting a much warmer Spring than we got in 2021, and that dry conditions should be more of the rule than the exception throughout Spring into Summer.

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