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Introduction
The City of York
is fortunate in that the British Association for the Advancement of Science was
founded in the City, and since its foundation has , at intervals of about fifty
years, met in York, and when it has met it has carried out a full scientific
survey of York and its environment, and published the results in its 'Survey of
York'.
As a result ,
the climate, geology, the biology and other aspects of the environment in and
around York has been much more closely documented and recorded to the highest
standards prevailing at the time than many other places in the world.
The picture
these studies show is of an area that has its own micro climate, quite
different from surrounding areas, arising from the geography of the area. The
flat Vale of York surrounded on almost all sides by dales and moors makes York
a place of low rainfall and warm temperatures, quite different from the rest of
Yorkshire.
When the
circumstances of climate are added to those of geology, which gives the Vale of
York its ancient communications routes along rivers and glacial ridges, and its
easily defended control of the northern approaches , it is hardly surprising
that the Romans ( who always knew how to choose a favourable location) decided
to site their northern headquarters at York.
Rainfall
To the
citizens of York , it is not surprising that the statistics going back well
over 150 years show York to be one of the driest and warmest places in the
United Kingdom. The low lying centre of York experiences severe flooding on a
quite regular basis, but the flooding is not as a result of rainfall in and
around York, but rather it arises because the river Ouse , which passes through
York, carries the rainfall from the moors and dales from well over 40 miles
away.
The rainfall
in York can be as low as 23 inches per annum, compared with over 65 inches per
annum only 20 or 30 miles distant. This difference has been consistent, year in
and year out since records began. When rainfall statistics are plotted on a
map, there is revealed a series of concentric circles centred on York showing
increasing rainfall as the distance from the centre of York increases. In
Harrogate and Leeds for example, the rainfall is about twice that of York.
It is a quite
common experience to be travelling towards York from any direction, and to be
experiencing heavy rainfall which suddenly clears away within about 10 miles of
York. For example, in 2007, at Acomb Grange, there were only three days of
light rain and showers between 28th June and 31st July
2007, when the rest of the country was experiencing severe flooding. It was
similar in 2006. The water butts which are used to store rainwater to irrigate
plants almost emptied and many garden plants succumbed to the lack of rainfall.
Local farmers
had to use artificial irrigation to keep their crops alive. Yet, only 20 miles
away, farmers were complaining of the wet summer !
Despite this
lack of rain, York has a plentiful supply of water from its river, which drains
the moors, and when areas roundabout have hosepipe bans imposed upon them by
water authorities, York never has a hosepipe ban
Snowfall
Both because
of the low rainfall and the warm temperatures, York rarely experiences heavy
snowfall in winter. Even when places only 20 miles away are snowbound, York
will only have a little dusting of snow.
Temperature
The British
Association surveys of York , show that the growing season in and around York
is, on average, about 11 days , on average, longer than the rest of Yorkshire.
It is , climatically, on a par with Oxford and even Rheims. Also, when crop
transpiration is measured ( ie the degree to which plants give up moisture to
the air) it is found that exceptionally for Britain , for over one third of the
year the transpiration exceeds the precipitation. That means that for one third
of the year plants have a water deficit.
Geology
The Vale of
York is one of the prime agricultural areas of England. Its fertile soil is the
envy of many elsewhere. The British Association surveys shows why this is the
case. In the time of the glaciers , there was a southerly movement of ice,
which gouged out a valley from the north - (the present approaches to the
Scottish border, which made York an important military headquarters for the
Romans and all subsequent occupiers). It then carved out the Vale of York,
leaving a glacial moraine ( ie a deposit of rubble ) at its southernmost tip.
The glacial
moraines , which now show themselves as elevated ridges, cross the Vale of York
and meet at York, where they are penetrated by the River Ouse. As the Vale was
boggy and marshy as the glaciers retreated, the elevated ridges and the river
channels formed lines of communication for early man , all of which centred on
the site of the present City, and were subsequently exploited by the Romans. To
this day , near the river the subsoil is permanently damp, and it is this dampness
which has preserved the wonderful archaeological deposits of the City.
What was left
behind in the soil by the glaciers is what makes the Vale of York such a
fertile area. The soil is far from homogenous and its constitution can vary
considerably within very short distances, but in essence the composition is a
mixture of sand, gravel and clay mixed in with aeons of vegetable decay to
produce a fertile topsoil, which because of its clay content is often difficult
to work. Underlying this is a layer of boulder clay and finer gravel about 20
to 30 yards deep over bedrock.
One of the
glacial moraines runs across Acomb Grange, and looking south from Acomb Grange
it seems that this is a hilly region , not a Vale.
The effects of climate and geology
We have
mentioned above the historical impact of both the climate and the geology on
communications and military matters, on archaeological techniques and on
farming. But there are effects on the personality of the local inhabitants - a
warmer drier climate makes them more relaxed , and less in a hurry to take a
decision - a phenomenon that often infuriates outsiders. This reflects itself
in many different forms of statistics. For example, in 2003, York had the
lowest proportion of taxpayers filing their tax returns before December of any
tax district in the country. Direct selling companies find that a customer in
York, on average, takes four times as long to decide whether or not to buy.
Some visitors find they need time to acclimatise to this more pleasant pace of
life .
In many
subtle and different ways the differences of climate have an impact that make
the way of life in York different from many other areas of England .
One very
specific way has relevance to Acomb Grange. In Roman times , there were some
hints that the Romans may have cultivated grapevines on some of the south
facing ridges along what is now the A64. There is a body of documentary
evidence that monks had extensive estates along those same ridges, at Askham
Bryan, Askham Richard and into Acomb , which produced some of the better
medieval English wine. Three factors killed off the English wine trade in the
middle ages - one was the marriage of the King to the heiress of Bordeaux, one
was the Black Death and the third was the Little Ice Age, when temperatures
fell throughout Europe.
However,
visit any English vineyard today, and the chances are that you will be given a
leaflet telling the story of the fine medieval vineyards around York. And why
not ! Look at the details of the geology - the soil is prime vine growing soil.
The soil structure is similar to many great French vineyards. The climate is
more favourable than in most of England.
It is for
this reason that having studied the climatological and geological records of
the British Association, and knowing a little of the history of the medieval
vineyards, in 1999 we decided to plant a new vineyard at Acomb Grange. If it
had come into full production, it would have been the most northerly commercial
vineyard in the European Union. Unfortunately, we had not anticipated the
explosion in the rabbit population in 2000 and 2001, and all our newly planted
vines were devoured by voracious rabbits. We are having to start all over
again.
For further
details see our vineyard page.
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Last revision 30/04/08