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Summary

A possible catch meadow of probable nineteenth or early twentieth century date is visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s onwards as several roughly narrow and parallel earthwork ditches on the east facing slopes of a combe to the north and west of Owlacombe 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 (XIX to XX - 1801 AD to 1946 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RS, RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RS 4242-4243 04-NOV-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356902.

Parallel narrow earthwork ditches are visible.

Environment Agency, 2005-2012, LiDAR DTM data JPEG image (1m resolution), LIDAR ST0102 Environment Agency DSM 19-DEC-2005 (Cartographic). SDV357033.

The earthwork banks were visible as earthworks.

Next Perspectives, 2010, Aerial Photography for Great Britain, Next Perspectives PGA Imagery ST0102 22-MAY-2010 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356259.

The ditches remained visible, albeit grassed over and possibly somewhat eroded in condition.

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

A possible catch meadow of probable nineteenth or early twentieth century date is visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s onwards as several roughly narrow and parallel earthwork ditches on the east facing slopes of a combe to the north and west of Owlacombe 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.
In this instance the water meadow was probably supplied by the spring-fed stream that flowed to the south of the farm from the south-west. The gutter earthworks remained visible on digital images derived from aerial photographs and lidar data taken in 2010.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV356259	Aerial Photograph: Next Perspectives. 2010. Aerial Photography for Great Britain. Aerial Photography for Great Britain Aerial Photographs. Digital. Next Perspectives PGA Imagery ST0102 22-MAY-2010.
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
SDV356902	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1946. RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RS. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/CPE/UK/1823 RS 4242-4243 04-NOV-1946. [Mapped feature: #67396 ]
SDV357033	Cartographic: Environment Agency. 2005-2012. LiDAR DTM data JPEG image (1m resolution). Environment Agency LiDAR data. Digital. LIDAR ST0102 Environment Agency DSM 19-DEC-2005.

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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