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Summary

A possible catch meadow of possible post-medieval to nineteenth century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s onwards as roughly parallel narrow earthwork ditches on the slopes of a combe to the south of Rhode 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 distributing it evenly across the slopes 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

• SHINE: Earthworks of former catch (water)meadow leats (northern field) and orchard banks (southern field), north of Great Combe

Other References/Statuses

• SHINE Candidate (Yes)

Monument Type(s) and Dates

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

Full description

BKS Surveys Ltd, 1967, BKS/2822, BKS/2822 V 2894-2895 14-MAR-1967 (Aerial Photograph). SDV354836.

Narrow earthwork ditches are visible.

Next Perspectives, 2002, Pan Government Agreement, Next Perspectives PGA Imagery SS9804 29-SEP-2002 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356896.

Narrow earthwork ditches are visible.

Next Perspectives, 2010, Aerial Photography for Great Britain, Next Perspectives PGA Imagery SS9804 22-MAY-2010 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356259.

The course of some of the ditches are partially visible as cropmarks.

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 possible post-medieval to nineteenth century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s onwards as roughly parallel narrow earthwork ditches on the slopes of a combe to the south of Rhode 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 catch meadow probably tapped the stream that flows southwards along the combe. The remains of the gutters were identifiable as very slight and grassed over earthworks on digital images derived from aerial photographs taken in 2002, but only as fragmentary cropmarks on images taken in 2010.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV354836	Aerial Photograph: BKS Surveys Ltd. 1967. BKS/2822. BKS Surveys Ltd. Photograph (Paper). BKS/2822 V 2894-2895 14-MAR-1967. [Mapped feature: #67636 ]
SDV356259	Aerial Photograph: Next Perspectives. 2010. Aerial Photography for Great Britain. Aerial Photography for Great Britain Aerial Photographs. Digital. Next Perspectives PGA Imagery SS9804 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
SDV356896	Aerial Photograph: Next Perspectives. 2002. Pan Government Agreement. Pan Government Agreement Aerial Photographs. Digital. Next Perspectives PGA Imagery SS9804 29-SEP-2002.

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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