O roses for the flush of youth, 
  And laurel for the perfect prime; 
But pluck an ivy branch for me 
  Grown old before my time. 

O violets for the grave of youth, 
  And bay for those dead in their prime; 
Give me the withered leaves I chose 
  Before in the old time.

About the headline (FAQ)

Note: first published under the pseudonym of Ellen Alleyn.

Text Authorship:

• by Christina Georgina Rossetti (1830 - 1894), "Song", from Germ (Feb. 1850) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):

• by David Arditti (b. 1964), "O roses for the flush of youth", op. 10 no. 2, from Three Songs of Christina Rossetti, no. 2 [sung text checked 1 time]
• by Henry Clough-Leighter (1874 - 1956), "Roses for the flush of youth", published <<1940 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875 - 1912), "Oh roses for the flush of youth", op. 57 no. 3 (1904), published 1904 [ alto and piano ], from Six Sorrow Songs, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
• by George Selwyn English (b. 1912), "Song", 1931 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by Grace Marschal-Loepke (b. 1885), "In the old time", published <<1940 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by George Oldroyd (1886 - 1951), "Soliloquy", published 1921 [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
• by Humphrey Procter-Gregg (1895 - 1980), "O roses" [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 8
Word count: 52