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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 1946 onwards, at the site of a former farmstead of Flesterhaies, 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 Modern - 1540 AD to 2013 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/CPE/UK/1823, RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RP 3311-12 04-NOV-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV354994.

The catch meadow is visible as a series of earthwork ditches.

Ordnance Survey, 1967, OS/67039 V, OS/67039 V 126-27 18-APR-1967 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356901.

The catch meadow remains partly visible as a series of earthwork ditches.

Ordnance Survey, 1989, OS/89162, OS/89162 V 612-13 08-MAY-1989 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356894.

The catch meadow gutters appear to have been completely levelled.

Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R., 2014-2015, East and Mid Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project (Interpretation). SDV356883.

A catch meadow of probable 19th century date is visible as a series of earthwork ditches on aerial photographs of 1946 onwards, at the site of a former farmstead of Flesterhaies, 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 1.20 hectares of southeast facing slope on the eastern side of the former farm. The system comprises a series of parallel gutters which measure less than 2m in width and appear to tap a spring-fed stream which rises approximately 950m to the northwest. 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. The catch meadow gutters remain partly visible on aerial photographs of 1967, although appear to have been completely levelled by 1989.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV354994	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1946. RAF/CPE/UK/1823. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RP 3311-12 04-NOV-1946. [Mapped feature: #66863 ]
SDV356883	Interpretation: Hegarty, C. + Knight, S. + Sims, R.. 2014-2015. East and Mid Devon River Catchments National Mapping Programme Project. AC Archaeology Report. Digital.
	Linked documents:1
SDV356894	Aerial Photograph: Ordnance Survey. 1989. OS/89162. Ordnance Survey. Photograph (Paper). OS/89162 V 612-13 08-MAY-1989.
SDV356901	Aerial Photograph: Ordnance Survey. 1967. OS/67039 V. Ordnance Survey. Photograph (Paper). OS/67039 V 126-27 18-APR-1967.

Associated Monuments: none recorded

Associated Finds: none recorded

Associated Events

• EDV6530 - The East and Mid-Devon Rivers Catchment NMP project (Ref: ACD613)

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