Drought in Burnett County, WI: 4.6 years in 10 since 2000

4.6 years in 10

Burnett County, WI: 12 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. More drought-prone than most US counties.

20002025

Drought years: 2003 (19 wk), 2004 (15 wk), 2006 (26 wk), 2007 (28 wk), 2009 (31 wk), 2010 (19 wk), 2012 (15 wk), 2013 (34 wk), 2021 (22 wk), 2022 (16 wk), 2023 (16 wk) and 2024 (15 wk). Not a single drought week in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2008, 2011, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020.

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 WI

2nd most drought-prone of 72 WI counties; the WI middle is 2.7 in 10. Closest on the list: Barron County (4.6 in 10) and Price County (4.2 in 10). Driest in WI: Barron County (4.6 in 10). Least drought: Fond du Lac County (0.8 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Sep (33% of weeks), then Nov (32%) and Dec (31%). Least in May (7%). May to September averages 19%.

25 Jan
26 Feb
24 Mar
12 Apr
7 May
11 Jun
18 Jul
27 Aug
33 Sep
26 Oct
32 Nov
31 Dec

The worst year: 2013

2013: 34 weeks in drought, peaking at D2 severe. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 22.6% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 6.4% at D2, 0.9% at D3, never any D4. Longest unbroken spell: 50 weeks, Jun 2, 2009 to May 11, 2010.

Lately

Last drought year: 2024, 15 weeks. 2016-2025: 4 in 10, against 5 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 25 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.