SUMMARYA two‐domain model of water movement, storage and drainage in a cracked clay soil has been applied and tested in the field by irrigating an instrumented lysimeter constructed around a 2.0 m length of mole drain. Measurements of drain outflow rates and of increases in soil water content were compared with model predictions. The model predicted satisfactorily the peak drain outflow rate and subsequent drain recession although there was a tendency for the model to underestimate the time to the start of drainage. Good agreement with the measured recharge profile was generally foun