Drought in Barnstable County, MA: 1.9 years in 10 since 2000

1.9 years in 10

Barnstable County, MA: 5 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. Less drought-prone than most US counties.

20002025

Drought years: 2002 (22 wk), 2016 (22 wk), 2020 (19 wk), 2022 (15 wk) and 2025 (27 wk). Not a single drought week in 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2023 and 2024.

A regular lawn is fine here; plan for the odd dry year

Real droughts are rare here. A smart controller that skips watering after rain covers the odd dry year.

You can keep a regular lawn. Worth doing: a rain-sensing or smart controller, and deeper, less frequent watering if Aug turns dry.

Drought has been more common in 2016-2025 (4 years in 10) than in 2000-2015 (0.6 in 10).

Against the rest of MA

9th most drought-prone of 14 MA counties; the MA middle is 1.9 in 10. Closest on the list: Suffolk County (1.9 in 10) and Norfolk County (1.9 in 10). Driest in MA: Worcester County (3.1 in 10). Least drought: Berkshire County (1.2 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Aug (21% of weeks), then Sep (21%) and Oct (15%). Least in Mar (9%). May to September averages 15%.

10 Jan
11 Feb
9 Mar
15 Apr
12 May
12 Jun
10 Jul
21 Aug
21 Sep
15 Oct
13 Nov
12 Dec

The worst year: 2025

2025: 27 weeks in drought, peaking at D2 severe. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 13.4% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 3.1% at D2, 0.4% at D3, never any D4. Longest unbroken spell: 37 weeks, Jan 13, 2026 to Sep 22, 2026.

Lately

Last drought year: 2025, 27 weeks. 2016-2025: 4 in 10, against 0.6 in 10 for 2000-2015, drier lately. So far in 2026: 37 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.