Montalcino is an area well-suited to farming, and the tie between farming folk and religion has always been close. Every planting or harvest, every change of season or type of work in the fields corresponded to a Mass, a religious solemnity, a feast day. The faithful then entrusted their prayers to their patron saints and Our Lady of Perpetual Help in hopes of a good harvest. Over the centuries, the Christian faith has become a part of the rhythms of agriculture, to the point of marking with a great many feasts and festivals the salient moments of cultivation and harvest.