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Summary

A possible simple catch meadow of probable post-medieval to 20th century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s as a narrow curvilinear earthwork ditch on the gentle south facing slopes of the Otter Valley, south-west of Longwood Farm.
Catch meadows are usually found on combe or hill slopes and are designed to irrigate pasture by diverting water from a spring or stream and passing it along the slope via a series of roughly parallel channels or gutters. When irrigation was required the gutters were blocked, causing water to overflow from gutter to gutter, thereby irrigating the slopes below.

Location

Protected Status: none recorded

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CATCH MEADOW (Post Medieval to XIX - 1540 AD to 1880 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1947, RAF/CPE/UK/1974, RAF/CPE/UK/1974 F20 3443-3444 11-APR-1947 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356127.

A curvilinear narrow earthwork ditch was visible. Map object based partly on this source.

Ordnance Survey, 1993, OS/93256 V, OS/93256 V 10-11 29-JUN-1993 (Aerial Photograph). SDV359505.

The central section of the ditch remained visible as an earthwork.

Environment Agency, 1998-2014, LiDAR DSM data (1m resolution), LIDAR ST1601 Environment Agency DSM 01-JAN-1998 to 30-SEP-2014 (Cartographic). SDV359178.

A curvilinear narrow earthwork ditch was visible. Map object based partly on this source.

Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R., 2016-2018, The Blackdown Hills AONB and East Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project (Interpretation). SDV359463.

A possible simple catch meadow of probable post-medieval to 20th century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s as a narrow curvilinear earthwork ditch on the gentle south facing slopes of the Otter Valley, south-west of Longwood Farm.
Many catch meadow systems are believed to date to the post medieval period, although it is likely that they were first developed in the medieval period and often continued in use into the twentieth century. Catch meadows provided a simple, inexpensive and effective form of irrigation. When irrigation was required water was diverted from a source such as a pond, river, spring or spring-fed stream and passed along the meadow slopes via one or more of the gutters, which was then caused to overflow. The lower, roughly parallel gutters then ‘caught’ and redistributed water passing it evenly over the surface of a meadow below. The gently flowing water prevented the ground freezing in winter and encouraged early growth in spring, thereby providing extra feed for livestock, particularly important during the hungry gap of the March and April.
The gutter probably tapped the stream that flows southwards towards the River Otter, from a point adjacent to Longwood farm, but small scale landscaping in this area has probably removed the gutter earthworks. The gutter was visible on images derived from lidar data and therefore probably survives south of the farm as a slight earthwork.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV356127	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1947. RAF/CPE/UK/1974. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/CPE/UK/1974 F20 3443-3444 11-APR-1947.
SDV359178	Cartographic: Environment Agency. 1998-2014. LiDAR DSM data (1m resolution). Environment Agency LiDAR data. Digital. LIDAR ST1601 Environment Agency DSM 01-JAN-1998 to 30-SEP-2014.
SDV359463	Interpretation: Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R.. 2016-2018. The Blackdown Hills AONB and East Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project. Historic England Research Report. Digital.
	Linked documents:2
SDV359505	Aerial Photograph: Ordnance Survey. 1993. OS/93256 V. Ordnance Survey. Photograph (Paper). OS/93256 V 10-11 29-JUN-1993.

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV7508 - The Blackdown Hills AONB and East Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme (NMP) project (Ref: ACD1228)

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