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Summary

A possible simple catch meadow of probable post-medieval to 19tch century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s as a curvilinear earthwork ditch on the east-facing slopes south of Rollestone 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 (Post Medieval to XIX - 1540 AD to 1880 AD (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1946, RAF/106G/UK/1273, RAF/106G/UK/1273 V 5059-5060 23-MAR-1946 (Aerial Photograph). SDV358976.

A curvilinear gutter was visible as a shallow earthwork ditch.

Royal Air Force, 1963, RAF/543/2332, RAF/543/2332 2F22 35-36 26-JUL-1963 (Aerial Photograph). SDV354847.

The gutter was visible as a subtle earthwork ditch.

Environment Agency, 1998-2014, LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution), LIDAR SX9295-SX9395 Environment Agency DTM 01-JAN-1998 to 30-SEP-2014 (Cartographic). SDV359177.

Very slight elements of the gutter might survive to be visible as earthworks.

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

A possible simple catch meadow of probable post-medieval to 19tch century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s as a curvilinear earthwork ditch on the east-facing slopes south of Rollestone 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 system was probably supplied by the spring-fed stream that rises to the north-west of Rolleston Barton and flows west to east along the combe immediately to the north. The single gutter remains visible as a subtle earthwork on aerial photographs of 1963 but cannot be clearly seen on more recent images. Very slight traces of short sections of gutter can be discerned on digital images derived from lidar data, but much of the earthwork appears to have been levelled.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV354847	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1963. RAF/543/2332. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/543/2332 2F22 35-36 26-JUL-1963.
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
SDV358976	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1946. RAF/106G/UK/1273. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/106G/UK/1273 V 5059-5060 23-MAR-1946. [Mapped feature: #73131 ]
SDV359177	Cartographic: Environment Agency. 1998-2014. LiDAR DTM data (1m resolution). Environment Agency LiDAR data. Digital. LIDAR SX9295-SX9395 Environment Agency DTM 01-JAN-1998 to 30-SEP-2014.

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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