Drought in Sussex County, DE: 2.3 years in 10 since 2000

2.3 years in 10

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

20002025

Drought years: 2002 (43 wk), 2007 (22 wk), 2008 (19 wk), 2011 (13 wk), 2012 (30 wk) and 2024 (14 wk). Not a single drought week in 2000, 2003, 2004, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023.

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 Jul, the month drought is most common here. Put beds on drip before the next dry year.

Against the rest of DE

1st most drought-prone of 3 DE counties; the DE middle is 1.9 in 10. Closest on the list: Kent County (1.9 in 10). Least drought: New Castle County (1.2 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Jul (21% of weeks), then Aug (19%) and Oct (19%). Least in Dec (9%). May to September averages 16%.

14 Jan
15 Feb
11 Mar
16 Apr
14 May
15 Jun
21 Jul
19 Aug
13 Sep
19 Oct
11 Nov
9 Dec

The worst year: 2002

2002: 43 weeks in drought, peaking at D4 exceptional. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 14.7% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 6.2% at D2, 0.9% at D3, 2 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 44 weeks, Oct 30, 2001 to Aug 27, 2002.

Lately

Last drought year: 2024, 14 weeks. 2016-2025: 1 in 10, against 3.1 in 10 for 2000-2015, wetter lately. So far in 2026: 25 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.