Drought in Guadalupe County, TX: 6.9 years in 10 since 2000

6.9 years in 10

Guadalupe County, TX: 18 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. More drought-prone than most US counties.

20002025

Drought years: 2000 (34 wk), 2005 (18 wk), 2006 (52 wk), 2008 (40 wk), 2009 (42 wk), 2011 (49 wk), 2012 (43 wk), 2013 (44 wk), 2014 (48 wk), 2015 (26 wk), 2018 (18 wk), 2019 (19 wk), 2020 (26 wk), 2021 (17 wk), 2022 (45 wk), 2023 (44 wk), 2024 (25 wk) and 2025 (52 wk). Not a single drought week in 2004 and 2016.

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 Feb peak, and check your water utility for a turf-removal rebate before you dig.

Against the rest of TX

20th most drought-prone of 254 TX counties; the TX middle is 5.8 in 10. Closest on the list: Real County (6.9 in 10) and Midland County (6.9 in 10). Driest in TX: Uvalde County (7.7 in 10). Least drought: Jasper County (2.3 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Feb (59% of weeks), then Oct (58%) and Mar (56%). Least in May (44%). May to September averages 49%.

53 Jan
59 Feb
56 Mar
45 Apr
44 May
44 Jun
49 Jul
53 Aug
55 Sep
58 Oct
46 Nov
50 Dec

The worst year: 2006

2006: 52 weeks in drought, peaking at D4 exceptional. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 51.2% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 32.7% at D2, 17.2% at D3, 148 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 93 weeks, Oct 8, 2024 to Jul 14, 2026.

Lately

Last drought year: 2025, 52 weeks. 2016-2025: 8 in 10, against 6.3 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 35 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.