I tend to think of drought in terms of lack of rainfall during the traditional growing season, but intellectually I know that isn't a complete picture because snow or lack thereof factors in. We're in the second year of a drought in this part of Minnesota and I don't have statistics for last year. Seems like we still get plenty of snow here, but snow depth doesn't quite translate into making up for precip. shortfalls. I don't know the rain equivalent for a foot of snow.

This year though, for September we're at 3.80" of precipitation which is .13 ahead of normal for the month. But for the year to date we're at 19.53" whereas the normal is 25.02".

We're starting to get more frequent rain now, so we might make up some of the shortages if the cycle continues.

Rainfall amounts that are far below average. Not all ecosystems need a lot of rainfall. Utah is one of them. Northern Georgia is not. It's rained here about the same amount as there in as much time. Now *that's* a drought! In fact It's only rained at my house 3 or 4 times this summer. I've never seen such a persistent drought as this in all my life. I'm actually thinking of moving again because it's so doggone sunny here and I can't take this heat. If this goes on for another year or two I may actually relocate. Don't ask me where. Since half the east coast is dealing with the same stuff.

You know it's a drought when your state creates a drought web site! (see link below) :)

Here is a link that might be useful: Official NC Drought Web Site

Quirkyquercus--I didn't mean to imply that I thought that anybody who has gotten more than 10 inches of rain is whining if they call it a drought. I put that information in to explain why I don't know what people mean when they say drought. In Utah, sometimes the amount of precipitation has less of a bearing than on how the snow melts. If it melts too fast, flooding occurs and it runs off without filling the reservoirs. If it melts too slowly, too much soaks into the ground without filling the reservoirs. I haven't seen too much about drought this year, probably because the snow melted in a way that it did a good job of replenishing the reservoirs.

If you've had as little precipitation as we have, you're obviously in much worse shape, because you don't have the system of reservoirs in your mountains.

As for Utah's ecosystem, if we didn't irrigate, it would be desert with occasional stands of native plants, not solid green KBG lawns.

I guess it is all relative. We are about 7 inches below normal rainfall for the year in my area. By Utah standards it would probably be the wettest year on record. Still, most of the water here runs into rivers and out to the ocean pretty rapidly. They estimate we only have 4-5 months of water on hand for drinking if we don't get any significant rain.

I've heard 2 kinds of "drought" discussed. The first is just lack of rain and the subsequent dry soil. In that sense, it doesn't matter if you are above or below average for a year, decade, whatever - it just matters if it rained recently. For a plant, living on its own on the soil's surface, that is the immediate idea of "drought." On a larger scale, we talk of drought having a deep impact on the macro water system - rivers, lakes, ground water. At least in my area, we have gotten enough rain recently so the grass has greened up, but the rivers and lakes are still dangerously low.

We are now officially under a "total water ban"
and take2w, here is GA's drought website...