DroughtOdds

Drought in Beaufort County, SC: 3.1 years in 10 since 2000

3.1 years in 10

Beaufort County, SC: 8 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. About as drought-prone as a typical US county.

  1. 20
  2. 28
  3. 36
  4. 0
  5. 3
  6. 0
  7. 0
  8. 19
  9. 0
  10. 7
  11. 0
  12. 41
  13. 35
  14. 7
  15. 0
  16. 0
  17. 1
  18. 7
  19. 13
  20. 12
  21. 0
  22. 0
  23. 21
  24. 1
  25. 2
  26. 9

20002025

Drought years: 2000 (20 wk), 2001 (28 wk), 2002 (36 wk), 2007 (19 wk), 2011 (41 wk), 2012 (35 wk), 2018 (13 wk) and 2022 (21 wk). Not a single drought week in 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2020 and 2021.

Keep a lawn, but switch to drought-tolerant grass

Dry years come often enough to kill a thirsty lawn every few summers. Keep the lawn, reseed with a drought-tolerant mix, and put the beds on drip.

If you reseed, use a drought-tolerant mix and do it well clear of May, the month drought is most common here. Put beds on drip before the next dry year.

Against the rest of SC

40th most drought-prone of 46 SC counties; the SC middle is 3.8 in 10. Closest on the list: Dillon County (3.1 in 10) and Marion County (3.1 in 10). Driest in SC: Abbeville County (5.8 in 10). Least drought: Charleston County (2.3 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in May (42% of weeks), then Apr (39%) and Jun (27%). Least in Sep (3%). May to September averages 23%.

  1. 16 Jan
  2. 16 Feb
  3. 25 Mar
  4. 39 Apr
  5. 42 May
  6. 27 Jun
  7. 25 Jul
  8. 19 Aug
  9. 3 Sep
  10. 9 Oct
  11. 15 Nov
  12. 17 Dec

The worst year: 2011

2011: 41 weeks in drought, peaking at D4 exceptional. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 21.1% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 11.1% at D2, 6.3% at D3, 16 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 65 weeks, Mar 22, 2011 to Jun 12, 2012.

Lately

Last drought year: 2022, 21 weeks. 2016-2025: 2 in 10, against 3.8 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 34 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.

Further reading

Beaufort County lands on the plan covered in changing to a drought-tolerant grass. Its worst year, 2011, was not one of the big national drought years; see the worst years since 2000. How each of Beaufort County's 1,401 weeks was judged: how drought is counted.