Although the river Usk is a major factor in the meadows, flooding them most winters, we don’t know much about the water the rest of the year. We’re planning to improve our knowledge by installing dip wells – small, covered holes about a metre deep – so we can take regular measurements of how far below the ground surface the water is. While digging, we also took a soil sample that will be analysed to see what nutrients it contains. Since each flood leaves rich silt on the surface of the meadows, we’re expecting quite a lot.