MMO3161 - 19th Century water meadow south of Lyshwell Farm (Monument)

A water meadow of probable 19th Century date is visible on aerial photographs as earthworks on the south facing slopes of a tributary to Dane's Brook, centred at circa SS 8380 3053 to the south of Lyshwell Farm, with which it is probably associated. This is a type of water meadow known as catchwork or field gutter system, commonly found on combe or hill slopes and designed to irrigate pasture by diverting water from a spring or stream. The water is carried along the valley sides via one or more channels or gutters and when irrigation was required the gutters were blocked, causing water to overflow from gutter to gutter, thereby irrigating the slopes. This film of water prevented the ground freezing during the winter and raised the temperature of the grass in the spring, thereby encouraging early growth, particularly important during the hungry gap of March and April. Three gutters are clearly visible, roughly following the contours of the south facing combe slope. The system can be seen in use on aerial photographs of the 1940s and the existence of at least one further gutter near the hedgeline can be inferred from a visible flush of water. The system was probable supplied with water by a leat or carriage gutter visible immediately to the west, recorded separately. [1-4] This record was enhanced as part of the National Record of the Historic Environment to Exmoor National Park Historic Environment Record data transfer project. [5]