[Talk-GB] Tagging farmland in the UK

[James Derrick]

Hi,

For about three years I've been adding field-level detail to 
Northumberland spreading out from the main conurbations, into to the 
rural network of farms and up into the higher hill areas where I walk 
and cycle.

As well as adding field boundaries and farm settlement detail, I've been 
adding land use detail, which has just started a discussion with Gregory 
(Living with Dragons).

https://www.openstreetmap.org/changeset/70502558

I've been differentiating between cultivated areas mainly ploughed for 
crops and areas of grass used to graze animals.

If I understand Gregory's comment (and well accept this may be 
incorrect...), the crux seems to be the use of landuse=farmland verses 
landuse=meadow.


Can I ask what are you thoughts on (any) difference and best practice 
for the UK please?


My interpretation (right or wrong) has been...

landuse=meadow : grassy areas, not regularly ploughed, used for grazing 
animals such as cows or sheep.
Evidence on imagery - cows, sheep, lack of tractor compaction tracks, 
medieval ridge/ furrow.

landuse=farmland : cultivated areas ploughed for crops such as wheat or 
barley.
Evidence on imagery - tractor compaction, ripening wheat, no animals.

This is not a rigorous definition - e.g. a green field of barley without 
tractor tramlines could look like an empty field without sheep, but with 
local knowledge of cultivation, height, etc., my intention was to show 
differences as rich arable lowland areas fade into less fertile higher 
ground.


As the altitude rises into the Northumberland National Park, sheep on 
grass gradually changes to open moorland, which, whilst you're reading 
this, is also worth a sanity check.

landuse = heath : heather, and other low shrubs, formerly burnt but now 
cut, high hills

And no, I wasn't avoiding natural = fell as it doesn't render in Mapnik; 
there was a lot of existing heath sketched in before I started, so it 
seemed best to continue!

Thanks for any advice you can offer (and happy mapping...),


https://www.openstreetmap.org/user/James%20Derrick

James
-- 
James Derrick
     42 at jamesderrick.org, Cramlington, England
     Beyond the Horizon of the place we lived when we were young,
     In a World of Magnets and Miracles. Pink Floyd.