Old Farmers Almanac Gardening Calendar

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If you want to know the weather, chances are you don't spend much time staring at raccoons. Or following the migration patterns of monarch butterflies. But they could be foretelling things about the season ahead that even the weather app on your phone can't tell you. Maybe.

Back in 1978, Farmers' Almanac spoke to Dick Goddard, a meteorologist and weather guru from Cleveland, and featured his top 20 nature signs that all point to a hard winter ahead. Fast forward to today, and Farmers' Almanac readers are already seeing some of these "signs" in their own backyards.

If you'd rather put your trust in the hands of nature and folklore to predict your 2020 winter, then be on the lookout for these things happening around you. And just to be on the safe side, cross-reference it with what your actual meteorologist says. You know, before you start planning a blizzard-free January because that pig's "really gathering twigs, not sticks per se."

Thicker-than-normal corn husks.
Woodpeckers sharing a tree.
The early arrival of the snowy owl.
The early departure of geese and ducks.
The early migration of the Monarch butterfly.
Thick hair on the nape of a cow's neck.
Heavy and numerous fogs during August.
Raccoons with thick tails and bright bands.
Mice chewing furiously to get into your home.
The early arrival of crickets on the hearth.
Spiders spinning larger-than-usual webs and entering the house in great numbers.
Pigs gathering sticks.
Ants marching in a line rather than meandering.
Early seclusion of bees within the hive.
Unusual abundance of acorns.
Muskrats burrowing holes high on the river bank.
"See how high the hornet's nest, 'twill tell how high the snow will rest."
Squirrels gathering nuts early to fortify against a hard winter.
Frequent halos or rings around the sun or moon forecasts numerous snowfalls.
And last but not least, a true reader favorite: the size of the orange vand on the woolly bear (or woolly worm) caterpillar.

While all of these signs might be hard for us to notice (not everyone has the chance to study the hair on the nape of a cow's neck, okay?), most of them would make a fun nature scavenger hunt to complete during the seasons leading up to winter.

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