Drought in Pearl River County, MS: 2.3 years in 10 since 2000

2.3 years in 10

Pearl River County, MS: 6 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. About as drought-prone as a typical US county.

20002025

Drought years: 2000 (43 wk), 2006 (24 wk), 2009 (13 wk), 2011 (44 wk), 2015 (15 wk) and 2023 (20 wk). Not a single drought week in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2013, 2017, 2018, 2019, 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 MS

47th most drought-prone of 82 MS counties; the MS middle is 2.7 in 10. Closest on the list: Wilkinson County (2.3 in 10) and Amite County (2.3 in 10). Driest in MS: Tallahatchie County (4.2 in 10). Least drought: Benton County (1.5 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Nov (28% of weeks), then May (24%) and Mar (24%). Least in Feb (9%). May to September averages 18%.

14 Jan
9 Feb
24 Mar
19 Apr
24 May
17 Jun
15 Jul
19 Aug
14 Sep
16 Oct
28 Nov
24 Dec

The worst year: 2011

2011: 44 weeks in drought, peaking at D4 exceptional. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 18.5% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 7.8% at D2, 3.6% at D3, 26 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 46 weeks, Mar 7, 2000 to Jan 16, 2001.

Lately

Last drought year: 2023, 20 weeks. 2016-2025: 1 in 10, against 3.1 in 10 for 2000-2015, wetter lately. So far in 2026: 16 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.