See important guidance on the use of this record.

If you have any comments or new information about this record, please email us.

Summary

A possible catch meadow of probable post-medieval to 20th century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s onwards and possibly on digital images derived from lidar data captured in 2016, as narrow curvilinear and roughly parallel earthwork ditches on the gentle east and south-east facing slopes of the Otter Valley, south-east of Mohun’s Ottery, Luppitt parish.
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 XX - 1540 AD to 1947 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1947, RAF/CPE/UK/1974, RAF/CPE/UK/1974 RS 4304-4305 11-APR-1947 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356127.

Water is visble spilling downslope from three earthwork channels. Map object based partly on this source.

Ordnance Survey, 1982, OS/82219 V, OS/82219 1684-1685 03-SEP-1982 (Aerial Photograph). SDV357675.

A broad curvilinear earthwork ditch was visible.

Next Perspectives, 2010, Aerial Photography for Great Britain, Next Perspectives APGB Imagery ST1905 04-MAY-2010 (Aerial Photograph). SDV359490.

Six earthwork ditches were visible on the south-east facing slopes.

Bluesky International, 2016, LiDAR DTM data (0.5m resolution) Blackdown Hills and East Devon AONBs: 3 transects, LIDAR ST1905 Bluesky International DTM 04-MAY-2016 (Cartographic). SDV359714.

South of the stream one of the narrow east facing catch meadow ditches and the broad curvilinear ditch was visible. North of the stream six possible earthwork catch meadow channels were visible.
Numerous narrower and broader probable drainage channels were visible and were not transcribed.
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 catch meadow of probable post-medieval to 20th century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s onwards and possibly on digital images derived from lidar data captured in 2016, as narrow curvilinear and roughly parallel earthwork ditches on the gentle east and south-east facing slopes of the Otter Valley, south-east of Mohun’s Ottery, Luppitt parish.
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.
Three gutters on the east and south-east facing slopes appear to be flowing with water on aerial photographs of April 1947, supporting the interpretation they were in use at that time. They appear to be laid out to tap the drain or stream flowing downslope within the shallow combe immediately to the north. Catch meadow gutters typically closely follow the contours in an almost level course to ensure close control of where the water was made to overflow on the slopes. In this instance the gutter ditches cross the contours more obliquely, possibly indicating a local variation. Only one of these three gutters can be identified on the lidar derived images.
A broader earthwork ditch or gutter between 40 and 80 metres upslope is just visible on the 1947 images, but more apparent on aerial photographs of 1982 and the lidar derived images. This curvilinear earthwork is more typical of a traditional catch meadows top gutter or headmain, and might previously been the main water supply for the catch meadow.
Six additional curvilinear were visible on digital images derived from aerial photographs of 2010 and the lidar derived images on the south-east facing combe slopes to the north of the stream. These were not noted on earlier images available to the survey but could be the remains of catch meadow gutters of 19th century date, potentially supplied with water from a second stream to the north. This interpretation is tentative.
Numerous additional interconnected ditches varying in width and density are apparent as earthworks across these slopes, some closely resembling the possible gutters on the south-east facing combe slopes. These have been interpreted as modern drainage channels, and therefore have not been transcribed by the survey.

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 RS 4304-4305 11-APR-1947.
SDV357675	Aerial Photograph: Ordnance Survey. 1982. OS/82219 V. Ordnance Survey. Photograph (Paper). OS/82219 1684-1685 03-SEP-1982.
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
SDV359490	Aerial Photograph: Next Perspectives. 2010. Aerial Photography for Great Britain. Aerial Photography for Great Britain Aerial Photographs. Digital. Next Perspectives APGB Imagery ST1905 04-MAY-2010.
SDV359714	Cartographic: Bluesky International. 2016. LiDAR DTM data (0.5m resolution) Blackdown Hills and East Devon AONBs: 3 transects. Not applicable. Digital. LIDAR ST1905 Bluesky International DTM 04-MAY-2016.

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)

Search results generated by the HBSMR Gateway from exeGesIS SDM Ltd.