Drought in Lowndes County, GA: 4.6 years in 10 since 2000

4.6 years in 10

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

20002025

Drought years: 2000 (44 wk), 2001 (20 wk), 2002 (19 wk), 2007 (36 wk), 2008 (13 wk), 2010 (13 wk), 2011 (52 wk), 2012 (25 wk), 2017 (13 wk), 2018 (20 wk), 2019 (13 wk) and 2025 (16 wk). Not a single drought week in 2003, 2005, 2009, 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 May peak, and check your water utility for a turf-removal rebate before you dig.

Against the rest of GA

58th most drought-prone of 159 GA counties; the GA middle is 4.2 in 10. Closest on the list: Candler County (4.6 in 10) and Baldwin County (4.2 in 10). Driest in GA: Berrien County (5.8 in 10). Least drought: Gilmer County (2.7 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in May (37% of weeks), then Jan (33%) and Feb (31%). Least in Sep (17%). May to September averages 26%.

33 Jan
31 Feb
24 Mar
28 Apr
37 May
30 Jun
24 Jul
23 Aug
17 Sep
18 Oct
30 Nov
28 Dec

The worst year: 2011

2011: 52 weeks in drought, peaking at D4 exceptional. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 26.9% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 13.6% at D2, 5% at D3, 20 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 87 weeks, Oct 26, 2010 to Jun 19, 2012.

Lately

Last drought year: 2025, 16 weeks. 2016-2025: 4 in 10, against 5 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 35 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.