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Summary

A catch meadow of probable 19th century date is visible as a series of earthwork ditches on aerial photographs of 1950 onwards and on digital images derived from lidar data captured between 1998-2014 at Blackaller Farm, Hemyock, with which it was probably associated.

Location

Protected Status: none recorded

Other References/Statuses: none recorded

Monument Type(s) and Dates

• CATCH MEADOW (Post Medieval to XIX - 1540 AD to 1900 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1950, RAF/541/534, RAF/541/534 RS 4081-82 30-MAY-1950 (Aerial Photograph). SDV357615.

A series of narrow linear ditches are visible.

Environment Agency, 1998-2014, LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution), LIDAR ST1315 Environment Agency DTM 01-JAN-1998 to 30-SEP-2014 (Cartographic). SDV359177.

A series of narrow linear ditches are visible.

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

A catch meadow of probable 19th century date is visible as a series of earthwork ditches on aerial photographs of 1950 onwards and on digital images derived from lidar data captured between 1998-2014 at Blackaller Farm, Hemyock, with which it was probably associated. Most 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. 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 March and April. The catch meadow covers an area of approximately 0.60 hectares of southeast facing slope on the east side of Blackaller Farm. The system comprises a series of parallel gutters which measure less than 2m in width and appear to tap a spring-fed stream that rises at the farm. This water meadow might have operated as what has been called an ‘integrated’ catch meadow, in which manure from the cow sheds within the farmyard was mixed with the water supply to supply liquid manure to the pasture.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV357615	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1950. RAF/541/534. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/541/534 RS 4081-82 30-MAY-1950.
SDV359177	Cartographic: Environment Agency. 1998-2014. LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution). Environment Agency LiDAR data. Digital. LIDAR ST1315 Environment Agency DTM 01-JAN-1998 to 30-SEP-2014. [Mapped feature: #78185 ]
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

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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