Drought in Bolivar County, MS: 3.8 years in 10 since 2000

3.8 years in 10

Bolivar County, MS: 10 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. More drought-prone than most US counties.

20002025

Drought years: 2000 (32 wk), 2005 (19 wk), 2006 (16 wk), 2007 (15 wk), 2010 (25 wk), 2011 (35 wk), 2013 (13 wk), 2022 (27 wk), 2024 (22 wk) and 2025 (20 wk). Not a single drought week in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2014, 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021.

Plan for drought as normal: shrink the lawn, go drip and natives

Drought is the normal state of things here. Most of the yard goes to natives and gravel on drip; any grass that stays is a small, tough patch.

If you are replacing turf, plant natives in fall so roots set before the Sep peak, and check your water utility for a turf-removal rebate before you dig.

Against the rest of MS

4th most drought-prone of 82 MS counties; the MS middle is 2.7 in 10. Closest on the list: Quitman County (3.8 in 10) and Washington County (3.8 in 10). Driest in MS: Tallahatchie County (4.2 in 10). Least drought: Benton County (1.5 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Sep (36% of weeks), then Oct (33%) and Aug (32%). Least in May (10%). May to September averages 22%.

22 Jan
19 Feb
18 Mar
12 Apr
10 May
15 Jun
19 Jul
32 Aug
36 Sep
33 Oct
26 Nov
20 Dec

The worst year: 2011

2011: 35 weeks in drought, peaking at D3 extreme. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 21.8% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 11.8% at D2, 4.4% at D3, 34 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 64 weeks, Aug 19, 2025 to Nov 3, 2026.

Lately

Last drought year: 2025, 20 weeks. 2016-2025: 3 in 10, against 4.4 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 44 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.