LCA5B Middle Test Valley Floor

General Description

The middle stretch of the River Test forms a flat valley floor, narrower than the Lower Test Floodplain and contained by valley terraces and the shoulders of the chalk hills. It is a strongly pastoral and tranquil landscape with many remnants of past traditional agricultural practices such as water meadows and commons.

Its settlements are generally small and even. Stockbridge is well contained on the valley floor, retaining its historical form. Other forms of development are limited.

Location

Middle Test Valley Floor covers the stretch of the river from the north west of Romsey to Fullerton.

Local Physical Influences

Landform: Flat valley bottom with adjacent valley sides steeper to the east, north of Michelmersh. From King’s Somborne northwards, the broad slopes of the chalk downlands to the east and west enclose the valley.

Geology and Soils: Alluvium with strips of Valley Gravels at the edge of the valley.

Drainage: Broad valley dominated by the River Test (including its confluence with the River Dun, the King’s Somborne river and the Wallop Brook), which is braided into several streams, some of which have engineered profile in the south of the area. Lakes, formed from former gravel pits, lie at Timsbury and Houghton.

Biodiversity and Vegetation Pattern

The area has a diverse flora and fauna and supports a range of wet carr woodland as well as ancient semi-natural woodland and agriculturally unimproved grassland. Typically the woodlands are found on more calcareous soils and are generally dominated by Ash with Field Maple and Yew in the drier areas. Other trees found in low frequencies include Lime, Hornbeam and Elm. The shrub layers are generally composed of Hazel, Elder, Blackthorn, Dogwood, Spindle and Privet. Typically Hazel was planted as a coppice crop. Wetter areas are dominated by Alder and Poplar.

Ground flora includes Dogs Mercury, with Bluebells, Enchanters Nightshade, Arum Lily, Early Dog Violet, Yellow Archangel, Sanicle, Moschatel, and Pignut. Wetter areas often have dense covers of Ransoms/Wild Garlic. Typical orchids include Early Purple Orchid, Twayblade and Birds-nest Orchid

The wet meadows are classed as agriculturally unimproved mesotrophic grasslands and are often typified as traditional grazed hay meadows. They are dominated by fine-leaved grasses such as Red Fescue, Crested Dogs-tail and Velvet Bent. There is a diverse range of flowering plants that can comprise a substantial proportion of the herbage, and can frequently include orchids such as Bee Orchid, Common Spotted Orchid, Pyramidal Orchid, Southern Marsh Orchid, and Early Purple Orchid. Wetter areas include Yellow Flag, Water avens, King cup, and Milkmaids. This area also supports the globally rare Southern Damselfly.

Local Historical Influences

The Middle Test Landscape Character Area was dominated by a patchwork of water meadow systems during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Today the remains of these systems, their associated structures, earthworks and enclosure boundaries survive in varying degrees of completeness. The water meadow resulted in a dramatic restructuring of the valley floor landscape and indeed prompted the removal of much earlier valley floor enclosure and common land. Today, the common land of Stockbridge Common survives and is owned and managed by the National Trust. To the south the River Test was slightly less well provided with water meadows and particularly to the south of Romsey. Within this portion of the river all types of water meadow are to be found and there may well be early eighteenth century examples surviving across the flood plain.

Early presumably medieval roads extend up along the valley following the contours of the first river terrace. These cross the valley at fording and bridging points and here settlements have developed to take advantage of this. The main route however extended north south along the valley floor heading from Romsey north to Stockbridge and Andover. Further up the valley slopes of this LCA the historic character reflects the nature of the surrounding landscape away from the valley. In the south this is one of smaller assarted fields and informal enclosure while to the north on the chalk geology later parliamentary field systems dominate. These historic forms extend down onto both sides of the valley slope.

Settlement Pattern

Settlements within the floodplain of the River Test are generally located at bridging or fording points across the river channel. In these areas the benefits of location for trade, river control and transport purposes outweigh the problems caused by excessive damp and periodic flooding. Such settlements as at Stockbridge tend to be linear in nature, strung out across both river banks but generally remain close to the bridges or fording point rather than extending up the valley side and away from the river.

Settlements were originally small nucleated villages traditionally perched on the gravel shelf just above the valley bottom or along the valley sides. However recent development has created a more linear form along the valley sides, for example at Timsbury. Stockbridge is the principal settlement within this LCA and is located on the valley floor.

Very few farms occupy the valley floor of this character area and are instead generally located upon or above the first river terrace.

Generally the roads within this LCA follow the river on both sides of the valley just above the floodplain and are typically perched upon the gravel shelf itself. Additionally there are a number of roads which cross the valley floor, and in some cases then continue up the valley sides these were originally the Drove Roads.

Local Settlements and Features of Built Form

Horsebridge: Chalk River Valley Settlement Type

Kimbridge Chalk River Valley Settlement Type

Stockbridge: Chalk River Valley Settlement Type

Timsbury (South western portion): Chalk River Valley Settlement Type

Traditional styles of built form include brick walls with thatch or clay tile roofs, and white render or chalk cob walls. Larger older properties in Stockbridge include stone detailing.

Community Perceptions

As a part of the River Test valley system, this area is of particular local importance and the area most often referred to for its tranquillity and scenic, pastoral and cultural interest. Of particular note are Romsey, Mottisfont, Stockbridge, the Mayfly pub at Leckford and Leckford Gardens, the trout fishing and water birds, and the cleanness of the river and streams.

There is a general perception of a lack of opportunity to access the countryside. Even the Test Way, which passes through the area, is not perceived as providing access to the river which is seen as for a privileged few.

The loss of some of the valley floor pastures, with their grazing cattle, into arable use is considered an unwelcome change. The disused and active quarries that abut the area are considered an eyesore, with concern as to how they are to be restored.

Stockbridge is valued for its surviving historical settlement pattern but considerable concerns were raised about the potential impact from car parking, not least the use of the town as a park and ride base for Winchester.

Remoteness and Tranquillity

Due to the lack of development, the Test River Valley Floor offers a prevailing sense of naturalness, tranquillity and solitude.

Key Characteristics

River sand and gravel deposits over chalk

Multi braided water channels of clear spring water with even flows all year

Important game fishing waters

Valley floor dominated by pasture creating a strong rural character

Variable density of trees alongside the river providing areas of enclosure as well as openness

Frequent patches of broadleaved woodland including carr woodland with alder and willow

Linear settlements located on first river terrace on the valley sides

A predominantly undeveloped valley floor, except for the distinctive historic settlement of Stockbridge which provides a bridging point over the River Test

Road system that follows gravel terraces which define the transition from valley floor to valley sides

Surviving common land within braided streams of the River Test

Surviving remains of bedwork water meadows upon the floodplain.Local Natural and Cultural Landscape Issues

Agricultural rationalization may threaten the survival of water meadow earthworks remaining on marginal land

Sensitivity to changes in the landform and riverine habitats, eg. from flood defence projects, along the principal river channels including the Test

Visual and noise impact from the volume of local traffic on a quiet rural landscape

Sensitivity of the historic medieval character of the settlement of Stockbridge to change.

Designations

Nature conservation

SSSI

Stockbridge Common Marsh - Unimproved neutral grassland, scrub, reedbed and some broadleaved woodland

River Test - Running water, marginal vegetation and adjacent habitats including woodland and unimproved grassland

Stockbridge Fen - Reedbeds, unimproved grassland and some broadleaved woodland

SINC

13 SINCs, including agriculturally unimproved grassland, broadleaved semi-natural woodland wet grassland and reedbeds

Volume 2: LCA5B Strategies and Guidelines