Sister Julie Newman, organic farmer

I've been a teacher all my working life. . . From being an educator in the formal school system, for the past 14 years I have been promoting healthy food through developing an organic farm in the heart of Wicklow town. This is part of a much larger project called An Tairseach. The name, which means threshold, signifies a transition from a world view that saw the Earth as purely a resource for humans to be used for their own benefit and profit, to a more benign relationship with planet Earth.

We have a farm shop too . . .which has been open for 14 years. It began very simply but has grown and developed organically in response to needs. Initially, we sold only our own produce but now we sell organic fruit that cannot be grown in this country. We added organic whole foods and more recently, we have begun to stock locally produced artisan foods.

As well as growing vegetables, we keep some animals. . . We have a small suckler herd, some pigs and sheep. We sell the produce in the farm shop. We also have two bog ponies, Billy and Bobby, as pets.

Having an organic farm shop in the convent grounds is very unusual. . . Conventional farming, based as it is on the use of fossil fuels, is not sustainable. We use our garden as a teaching tool to help people to grow at least some of their own herbs and vegetables. We have also provided some land for a community garden, which is beginning to flourish.

It's hard work. . . We grow a whole range of vegetables. We do all the root vegetables, and our summer vegetables include a great variety of greens, tomatoes, cucumbers, courgettes, a variety of squashes, culinary herbs and much more. Come and see and, even better, taste.

I love what I do. . . except when it rains incessantly and we can't get the silage made, or the crops fail because of drought. These are the joys of being a farmer.

The best advice I've ever been given is. . . "sit your saddle lightly".

If I wasn't doing this. . . I'd have my feet up.

When I'm not working. . . I enjoy hillwalking in the Wicklow mountains, bird-watching, or playing golf.

My earliest food memory is. . . excitement at seeing an orange when they became available after the war.

The best thing I've ever eaten is. . . strip-loin steak from our own farm.

Where did you eat it? At home with my community.

My dream dinner-party guests would be. . . my family and friends.

And I'd cook them .. . steak on a barbecue with lovely home-grown salads.

My ideal day off is spent. . . in the wildlife sanctuary on the farm.

I'm passionate about . . .the natural world and particularly about preserving the biodiversity on our farm.

I'm really good at . . .identifying wild flowers and birds.

I wish I was better at .. . playing golf.

I often imagine myself. . . getting a hole-in-one.

Not many people know this about me. . . but I love to watch rugby, especially when Leinster is playing.

My guilty pleasure is. . . chocolate.

Julie Newman is a Dominican sister. An Tairseach farm shop is open every Tuesday-Saturday from 9.30am to 5pm; tel: 0404-61833

In conversation with Marie-Claire Digby