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Summary

A catch meadow of probable post-medieval to 20th century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s as narrow curvilinear earthwork ditches on the south and south-east-facing slopes to the south-east of Cotleigh Court, Cotleigh parish, with which it was probably associated.
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 XX - 1540 AD to 1947 AD? (Between))

Full description

Royal Air Force, 1947, RAF/CPE/UK/1974, RAF/CPE/UK/1974 RP 3437-3438 11-APR-1947 (Aerial Photograph). SDV356127.

Four shallow and narrow curvilinear earthwork ditches were visible. Map object based partly on this source.

Bluesky International, 2016, LiDAR DTM data (0.5m resolution) Blackdown Hills and East Devon AONBs: 3 transects, LIDAR ST1901 Bluesky International DTM 24 & 30-APR-2016 (Cartographic). SDV359714.

Four shallow and narrow curvilinear earthwork ditches remained visible as an earthwork. Map object based partly on this source.

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 post-medieval to 20th century date was visible on aerial photographs of the 1940s as narrow curvilinear earthwork ditches on the south and south-east-facing slopes to the south-east of Cotleigh Court, Cotleigh parish, with which it was probably associated.
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. Any 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.
The catch meadow probably tapped the stream running along the combe at a point immediately to the south-west of the farm, a small pond in this location possibly providing the means to add manure to the water supply to create liquid fertiliser. At least four gutters, almost parallel to the contours of the combe, were visible taking the water along the gutter for almost 500m.
The gutters remained visible as earthworks on digital images derived from lidar data captured in 2016.

Sources / Further Reading

SDV356127	Aerial Photograph: Royal Air Force. 1947. RAF/CPE/UK/1974. Royal Air Force Aerial Photograph. Photograph (Paper). RAF/CPE/UK/1974 RP 3437-3438 11-APR-1947.
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
SDV359714	Cartographic: Bluesky International. 2016. LiDAR DTM data (0.5m resolution) Blackdown Hills and East Devon AONBs: 3 transects. Not applicable. Digital. LIDAR ST1901 Bluesky International DTM 24 & 30-APR-2016.

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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