The Wee Craigneith with rig & furrow

Can you imagine a time when the land before us, The Wee Craigneith, wasn’t a tranquil expanse of green? During the Middle Ages, this very spot was alive with activity. The Wee Craigneith bears the distinct marks of “rig and furrow.” This medieval farming technique transformed the landscape. Imagine teams of oxen pulling non-reversible ploughs, year after year, along the same strips of land. The soil, consistently turned to the right, gradually built up in the center of these strips. This created the raised ridges, or “rigs,” and the depressions, or “furrows,” that give the land its undulating appearance. The Wee Craigneith showcases this historical agricultural practice. The rigs and furrows here are a testament to the hard labor of medieval farmers. The ridges, perhaps up to 2 feet high when in use, provided crucial drainage in the wetter climate, ensuring crops like wheat didn’t become waterlogged. In the damper furrows between the rigs, farmers would have cultivated pulses or dredge, a mixture of oats and barley, which thrived in the wetter conditions. These ridges weren’t just practical for farming. They also became significant units in land ownership, used to assess the ploughman’s work and even for reaping in the autumn. So, as you look at The Wee Craigneith, imagine not just the green grass, but the bustling activity of medieval agriculture. Picture the oxen, the ploughs, and the families who depended on this land for their survival. The Wee Craigneith, marked with rig and furrow, offers a glimpse into a farming system that shaped this landscape for centuries.