St. Fiacre: Patron Saint of Gardeners and Gardening

St. Fiacre (died about 670) is the patron saint of gardeners and gardening: an Irish monk who settled in a forest near Meaux, in France, cleared the land with his own hands, and grew vegetables and healing herbs to feed the poor and the sick who came to him. His statue, a monk holding a spade, still stands in gardens around the world, and Paris’s horse-drawn cabs were once called fiacres after him. His feast day is August 30. Below are his story, the legend of the furrow, a gardener’s prayer to St. Fiacre, and other patron saints of gardens and growing things.

A short gardener’s prayer, written for this page:

St. Fiacre, you worked the soil and fed the hungry from your garden.
Bless my garden and the work of my hands,
send good rain and sunshine, keep away pests and blight,
and let what grows here be shared with others and give glory to God. Amen.

Who was St. Fiacre?

Fiacre was born in Ireland at the end of the sixth century and became a priest and hermit near the River Nore, in what is now County Kilkenny. Seeking greater solitude, he crossed to France about 628 and came to Meaux, east of Paris, where the bishop, St. Faro, welcomed him and gave him a piece of forest land at Breuil. There Fiacre built a chapel to the Blessed Virgin, a guesthouse for travelers and the poor, and a cell for himself. He lived by prayer, fasting and the hard work of his garden, growing vegetables for his guests and herbs to treat the sick. Many came to him for healing, and he became famous for his cures. He died on August 18, about 670, and his tomb at Breuil (now Saint-Fiacre-en-Brie) became a place of pilgrimage.

The legend of the furrow

According to legend, St. Faro offered Fiacre as much land as he could enclose with a furrow in a single day. Fiacre walked around the land, dragging his staff behind him, and the earth turned over as if plowed, the trees falling aside to make way. A woman who saw it ran to tell the bishop that the monk was a sorcerer, but Faro came, recognized a man of God, and asked his blessing.

Why were Paris cabs called fiacres?

In the seventeenth century the Hôtel Saint-Fiacre in Paris, an inn whose sign showed the saint, was the first place to rent out horse-drawn coaches by the hour. The coaches came to be called fiacres, and the word is still used in French and German for a horse cab. For this reason St. Fiacre is also a patron of cab and taxi drivers.

What is St. Fiacre the patron saint of?

St. Fiacre is the patron saint of:

Gardeners and gardening, and of herb growers and florists
Cab drivers and taxi drivers
People suffering from hemorrhoids and other ailments, which he was famous for curing

Scripture for gardeners

God’s first work for mankind was a garden (Genesis 2:15):

And the Lord God took man, and put him into the paradise of pleasure, to dress it, and to keep it.

Other patron saints of gardens

St. Dorothy (February 6), martyr, who according to legend sent roses and apples from heaven.
St. Phocas the Gardener, an early martyr of Sinope on the Black Sea, who grew food for travelers and the poor.
St. Rose of Lima (August 23), who grew flowers to support her family. See the St. Rose of Lima prayer.
St. Isidore the Farmer (May 15), patron of farmers. See the St. Isidore prayer.
St. Thérèse of Lisieux, “the Little Flower,” patron of florists. See the St. Thérèse prayer.

Prayers for gardeners

Written for this page.

Before planting

Lord of the harvest, I put these seeds into your earth.
Give them good soil, sun and rain, and let them grow in their time.
St. Fiacre, pray for my garden. Amen.

For a good harvest

Thank you, Father, for the fruits of the earth.
Bless this harvest, help me not to waste it,
and let me remember those who have no garden and no food. Amen.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the patron saint of gardening?

St. Fiacre, an Irish monk of the seventh century who lived in France. His feast is August 30.

Who is the patron saint of gardeners?

St. Fiacre. St. Dorothy and St. Phocas are also honored by gardeners.

Why does St. Fiacre hold a spade?

Because he cleared and dug his own garden at Breuil, growing food and medicinal herbs for the poor and the sick.

More patron saints

Texts and sources

Genesis 2:15 (Douay-Rheims).
Catholic Encyclopedia (1913), “St. Fiacre,” by C. Mulcahy, public domain (Wikisource).