Drought in Yazoo County, MS: 3.1 years in 10 since 2000

3.1 years in 10

Yazoo County, MS: 8 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. About as drought-prone as a typical US county.

20002025

Drought years: 2000 (32 wk), 2006 (15 wk), 2007 (15 wk), 2010 (14 wk), 2011 (16 wk), 2016 (13 wk), 2022 (13 wk) and 2023 (18 wk). Not a single drought week in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2012, 2014, 2019 and 2020.

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

Against the rest of MS

28th most drought-prone of 82 MS counties; the MS middle is 2.7 in 10. Closest on the list: Webster County (3.1 in 10) and Lowndes County (2.7 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 Sep (25% of weeks), then Oct (25%) and Nov (22%). Least in Apr (7%). May to September averages 13%.

18 Jan
11 Feb
12 Mar
7 Apr
8 May
8 Jun
11 Jul
16 Aug
25 Sep
25 Oct
22 Nov
17 Dec

The worst year: 2000

2000: 32 weeks in drought, peaking at D3 extreme. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 14.9% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 8.6% at D2, 3.4% at D3, 16 weeks with some of the county in D4. Longest unbroken spell: 24 weeks, Aug 29, 2023 to Feb 6, 2024.

Lately

Last drought year: 2023, 18 weeks. 2016-2025: 3 in 10, against 3.1 in 10 for 2000-2015, about the same. So far in 2026: 21 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.