Our Abbey farm

Farming is a traditional Cistercian occupation and a valued form of outdoor work in our monastic life. On our 200 acre farm at St Mary’s Abbey, 40 acres of which is woodland, we specialise in dry stock and tillage farming; wheat, barley, potato and fodder beat are amongst the crops usually grown.

This year we planted 27 acres of the energy crop, Miscanthus. 5 acres of our land adjacent to the River Blackwater is allocated as a wildlife habitat.

Eucharist Bread

The production of altar breads is another means by which we support our life of prayer. Both brown and white hosts in a full range of sizes are produced by the sisters in our Eucharist Bread Department using our own spring water source on site.

We distribute our Eucharist Bread products to parishes, monasteries, convents and other institutions throughout Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Greeting Cards

A range of greeting cards for all occasions in both Irish and English are designed and produced in our Card Department here in Glencairn. Our range of cards also includes personalised cards and a selection of individually handcrafted cards with pressed flowers grown in our monastery gardens.

Mortuary cards are also produced in a range of sizes designed to meet customer specifications.