Locally applicable information about climate and soil properties can help farmers identify opportunities and reduce risks associated with changing to new land uses. This article describes techniques for preparing high-resolution regional maps and GIS surfaces of agriculturally relevant climate parameters. Ways of combining these climate surfaces with soil data and information about the physical requirements of crops to identify areas likely to be the most suitable for new high-value crops are then outlined. Innovative features include methods for merging observations from temporary climate stations installed for one to two years in conjunction with longer-term climate station observations to improve input data for the maps, and techniques for mapping quantiles of climatic factors that may constrain agricultural operations. Examples are the expected ‘one-in-five year’ first and last frost dates, and the ‘one-in-five year’ lowest and highest seasonal rainfalls. The use of night-time satellite infrared observations to improve spatial resolution of frost hazard maps is also described. Typical standard errors of these climate mapping techniques are summarised. The benefits of ongoing consultation with local farmers and local government staff during the design and implementation of climate/soil/crop potential studies are described. These include optimising products to meet local needs, quality control of the resulting maps and GIS surfaces through local knowledge, and improved uptake of information by users. Further applications of techniques described in this paper include products useful to the energy sector, preparation of daily gridded climate data estimates for use in water quality and plant growth modelling, and development of regional climate change scenarios.

The late A. W. G. Lowther had for long collected information on Romano-British ‘chimney-pots’ and in his final years concluded that this was the true function of his Group B, except where a closed base indicated use as ornamental roof-finials. New discoveries have enlarged his originally small Group A, wheel-made pottery vessels with side-openings, which may possibly have had a ritual function. His notes are now presented in a published form, with comments on dating, distribution, and continental parallels; the opportunity has also been taken of adding a short excursus on Romano-British stone finials.

The purpose of this paper is to present an adequate record of the Iron Age pottery found in 1922–23 at a site on the left bank of the river Wey, at a point east of Wisley Church, of which only a small, and not fully representative selection has yet been published. The pieces hitherto recorded were selected from material presented to the British Museum, but a larger quantity has been kindly made available by Dr Eric Gardner, F.S.A., and is here published, together with pottery from the same site, now in Weybridge Museum. Account has also been taken of the sherds in the British Museum.

The pottery is stated to have been found in a series of pits, among which were some containing neolithic B rim sherds proving earlier occupation of the site, but no plans or sections or other adequate information about the site was published, though the report states that ‘four large kilns were uncovered and one small one, made expressly for firing the largest urn.’ It is also recorded that ‘a few loom-weights were found and wattle-and-daub was abundant.’

During the time that the excavation of the theatre was being carried out, the investigation of insula XVI, immediately west of it, was begun, and was completed after some three months' work.

The insula, a rectangle measuring 300 ft. by 160 ft. (with its greater length stretching from east to west) is bounded by roads on three sides, and by the metalled space surrounding the theatre on its fourth, or eastern, side. Cross-trenches showed the south road to be 29 ft., and the north road 18 ft., in width; the west road had been at least 29 ft. wide, but, owing to soil having been denuded from this higher part of the site, the exact width of this road was not determined by either of the two trenches dug across it (plan, pl. xxv).