Drought in Morehouse Parish, LA: 3.5 years in 10 since 2000

3.5 years in 10

Morehouse Parish, LA: 9 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. About as drought-prone as a typical US county.

20002025

Drought years: 2000 (28 wk), 2006 (16 wk), 2010 (37 wk), 2011 (48 wk), 2012 (14 wk), 2013 (15 wk), 2021 (19 wk), 2022 (32 wk) and 2023 (16 wk). Not a single drought week in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2014, 2020 and 2025.

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 LA

8th most drought-prone of 64 LA counties; the LA middle is 2.7 in 10. Closest on the list: Union Parish (3.5 in 10) and Rapides Parish (3.5 in 10). Driest in LA: Caddo Parish (4.6 in 10). Least drought: East Feliciana Parish (1.9 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Nov (35% of weeks), then Oct (33%) and Sep (32%). Least in May (13%). May to September averages 21%.

27 Jan
23 Feb
20 Mar
16 Apr
13 May
17 Jun
20 Jul
26 Aug
32 Sep
33 Oct
35 Nov
23 Dec

The worst year: 2011

2011: 48 weeks in drought, peaking at D3 extreme. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 23.5% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 14.3% at D2, 4% at D3, 4 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 85 weeks, Apr 20, 2010 to Nov 29, 2011.

Lately

Last drought year: 2023, 16 weeks. 2016-2025: 3 in 10, against 3.8 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 38 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.