Drought in Tioga County, PA: 0.8 years in 10 since 2000

0.8 years in 10

Tioga County, PA: 2 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. Less drought-prone than most US counties.

20002025

Drought years: 2016 (26 wk) and 2020 (15 wk). Not a single drought week in 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2024.

A regular lawn is fine here; plan for the odd dry year

Real droughts are rare here. A smart controller that skips watering after rain covers the odd dry year.

You can keep a regular lawn. Worth doing: a rain-sensing or smart controller, and deeper, less frequent watering if Aug turns dry.

Drought has been more common in 2016-2025 (2 years in 10) than in 2000-2015 (0 in 10).

Against the rest of PA

28th most drought-prone of 67 PA counties; the PA middle is 0.8 in 10. Closest on the list: Snyder County (0.8 in 10) and Greene County (0.8 in 10). Driest in PA: Adams County (1.9 in 10). Least drought: Susquehanna County (0 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Aug (12% of weeks), then Oct (10%) and Nov (9%). Least in Apr (0%). May to September averages 7%.

3 Jan
2 Feb
1 Mar
0 Apr
2 May
6 Jun
7 Jul
12 Aug
8 Sep
10 Oct
9 Nov
7 Dec

The worst year: 2016

2016: 26 weeks in drought, peaking at D2 severe. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 5.5% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 1.2% at D2, never any D4. Longest unbroken spell: 30 weeks, Jul 5, 2016 to Jan 24, 2017.

Lately

Last drought year: 2020, 15 weeks. 2016-2025: 2 in 10, against 0 in 10 for 2000-2015, drier lately. So far in 2026: 3 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.