Drought in Gilmer County, GA: 2.7 years in 10 since 2000
2.7 years in 10
Gilmer County, GA: 7 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. About as drought-prone as a typical US county.
- 52
- 31
- 27
- 0
- 0
- 0
- 8
- 40
- 53
- 6
- 2
- 2
- 10
- 1
- 0
- 0
- 36
- 18
- 3
- 6
- 0
- 0
- 12
- 11
- 9
- 3
20002025
Drought years: 2000 (52 wk), 2001 (31 wk), 2002 (27 wk), 2007 (40 wk), 2008 (53 wk), 2016 (36 wk) and 2017 (18 wk). Not a single drought week in 2003, 2004, 2005, 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 Nov, the month drought is most common here. Put beds on drip before the next dry year.
Against the rest of GA
159th most drought-prone of 159 GA counties; the GA middle is 4.2 in 10. Closest on the list: Chatham County (3.1 in 10). Driest in GA: Berrien County (5.8 in 10).
When in the year it hits
Most often in Nov (34% of weeks), then Jan (28%) and Oct (28%). Least in Feb (21%). May to September averages 24%.
- 28 Jan
- 21 Feb
- 24 Mar
- 23 Apr
- 23 May
- 24 Jun
- 27 Jul
- 24 Aug
- 24 Sep
- 28 Oct
- 34 Nov
- 27 Dec
The worst year: 2008
2008: 53 weeks in drought, peaking at D4 exceptional. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 25.6% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 16.4% at D2, 8.4% at D3, 47 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 94 weeks, Mar 27, 2007 to Jan 6, 2009.
Lately
Last drought year: 2017, 18 weeks. 2016-2025: 2 in 10, against 3.1 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 29 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.
Further reading
Gilmer County lands on the plan covered in changing to a drought-tolerant grass. Its worst year, 2008, was not one of the big national drought years; see the worst years since 2000. How each of Gilmer County's 1,401 weeks was judged: how drought is counted.