Drought in Essex County, NY: 0.8 years in 10 since 2000

0.8 years in 10

Essex County, NY: 2 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. Less drought-prone than most US counties.

20002025

Drought years: 2016 (16 wk) and 2018 (14 wk). Not a single drought week in 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2019, 2021, 2022, 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 Sep turns dry.

Drought has been more common in 2016-2025 (2 years in 10) than in 2000-2015 (0 in 10).

Against the rest of NY

36th most drought-prone of 62 NY counties; the NY middle is 0.8 in 10. Closest on the list: Tompkins County (0.8 in 10) and Oneida County (0.8 in 10). Driest in NY: Rockland County (2.3 in 10). Least drought: Otsego County (0 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Sep (13% of weeks), then Oct (8%) and Nov (6%). Least in Jun (0%). May to September averages 4%.

4 Jan
3 Feb
0 Mar
0 Apr
0 May
0 Jun
3 Jul
4 Aug
13 Sep
8 Oct
6 Nov
5 Dec

The worst year: 2016

2016: 16 weeks in drought, peaking at D2 severe. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 3.9% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 0.4% at D2, never any D4. Longest unbroken spell: 24 weeks, Sep 13, 2016 to Feb 21, 2017.

Lately

Last drought year: 2018, 14 weeks. 2016-2025: 2 in 10, against 0 in 10 for 2000-2015, drier lately. So far in 2026: 0 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.