Traditional Water Meadows

From the 17th century onwards, a revolution in pastoral agriculture spread across England, dramatically improving the productivity and value of farmland wherever it spread. This revolution came from the use of irrigated field systems known as water meadows, often maintained by skilled craftsmen known as “Drowners”. A ‘main carrier’ ditch took the water from the river via sluice gates into a series of ‘carriers’.  These split and recombined to form crazy jagged pattersn across the landscape, and from above looks like some crazy maze.

Controlled winter flooding led to natural land fertilization and two growing seasons for the grass: early spring so the livestock could be 'over-wintered' for less time, and late season for hay making (after much of the livestock had gone to market).