Page 89 - UNESCO_Zatec_2021_A4

View of hop fields and the river Ohře from Zálužice to Stekník, Stekník, 2019

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mention of riverbed regulations dates back to 1688–1690 other drainage systems have recently been built on the
when the riverbed in the section between Žatec and territory of component part 01 in the soggiest places of
Tvršice (a village in the buffer zone) was straightened. In hop fields. For more efficient cultivation and ensuring the
1906, the riverbed was also modified near the village of optimal amount of moisture, water from the river Ohře is
Zálužice (directly on the territory of component part 01). now distributed to hop fields by drip irrigation systems.
The water level on the river Ohře is currently regulated
by the sizeable Nechranice Reservoir built between 1961– It has never been possible to grow hops on a floodplain
1968 in the upstream area near the town of Kadaň. This on a large scale, without research and planning. For this
has eliminated the previously more frequent floods and reason, an exact knowledge of the local soil, moisture, and
stabilised the river flow. microclimatic conditions were always needed to select
suitable growing areas. From this information, passed
In addition to the regulatory modifications to the down from generation to generation, a human was able
riverbed, the protection against floods has also been to evaluate correctly when it makes sense to modify the
ensured by the construction of flood control banks. In landscape with small interventions, and on the contrary
the territory of the component part 01, the oldest such when it is more advantageous to give way to natural
artificial modification is considered to be a stone rampart conditions and grow hops elsewhere. In the territory of
located south of the village of Hradiště. component part 01, not only long-term stable areas for
hop growing were created, but also areas permanently
Although enough groundwater is vital for hops, saturated not used for hop growing purposes.
soil does not suit them. Waterlogged soils are found in the
river floodplain in places of groundwater springs and areas The construction of bridges with the possibility to
of shallow terrain depressions. Such sites are not visible overcome the river’s flow are also related to the
in the landscape, at first sight. However, they significantly management of the river landscape. It enabled
affect the quality of hop growing, and therefore some communication in a broader area such as between the
of them have been drained for agricultural purposes. two component parts. In the past, there were bridges
Earlier and later examples of building drainage systems between the component parts near the villages of
can be seen in the component part 01. The remains of Hradiště, Zálužice, Trnovany, and Rybňany and north of
earlier drainage ditches are still located south below the the town of Žatec. Of these bridges are preserved in the
Stekník Chateau. In connection with modern farming, historical footprint Hradiště, Zálužice and Trnovany.