Based on precipitation data and field investigation, we used the Mann-Kendall test and the standard precipitation index(SPI)method to analyze the trends of drought in Xuzhou City at different temporal scales and tried to determine the reasons for the drought disasters in recent years. The precipitation trend analysis showed that the precipitation over Xuzhou City gradually decreased during the period from 1951 to 2013, especially in the spring, autumn, and winter. The annual SPI analysis showed that the drought severity had significantly increased over the study area. Through analysis of the seasonal SPI, we found that the drought severity showed an increasing trend on the whole in the spring, autumn, and winter, while the situation was opposite in the summer and the trend was not significant. The monthly SPI over the period from 2009 to 2013 in Xuzhou City was calculated, and the results showed that there was a moderate drought in the year 2011 and mild droughts in other years. The water demand of wheat growth cannot be satisfied by natural rainfall alone; it requires compensation from irrigation water. Some counties and townships are facing problems such as insufficient farmland water infrastructure and inefficient irrigation techniques, which are among the main factors aggravating the agricultural drought in the city.