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from Volkslieder (Folksongs)

Sowing the seeds of love
Language: English 
I sowed the seeds of love,
It will blossom all in the spring,
It will blossom in April,
in May, and in June,
When the small birds do sweetly sing.

My gard'ner was standing by,
I asked him to choose for me,
He chose me the lily, the violet and pink,
Each of them I refused all three.

The lily I did not like,
Because it does fade so soon,
The violet and pink I did both overlook,
And so now I must bide till June.

In June there's a rosy bud,
And it runs all over me,
Of times I've been kissed by those red rosy lips,
Till I gained the green willow tree.

The willow tree will twist,
And the willow tree will twine,
And I wish that I was in that young man's arms,
That has stolen this heart of mine.

Text Authorship:

  • from Volkslieder (Folksongs)  [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 George Sainton Kaye Butterworth (1885 - 1916), "Sowing the seeds of love", from Folk Songs from Sussex, no. 3. [
     text verified 1 time
    ]

Set in a modified version by Ralph Vaughan Williams.

    • Go to the text. [ view differences ]

Set in a modified version by Gustav Holst.

    • Go to the text. [ view differences ]

Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 21
Word count: 144

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