“The Gardener”

Description

A "gardener" comes to a lady, offering many flowers if she will marry him. She is not interested.

Notes

One can only suspect that this piece was made up to get in as many flower symbols as possible; at least, there seems little point to most of the imagery. For a catalog of some of the sundry flower symbols, see the notes to "The Broken-Hearted Gardener."

Child prints a text (additions and corrections to "The Gardener", p. 258 in Volume V of the Dover edition) which conflates this with "In My Garden Grew Plenty of Thyme" or something similar.

The song is also sometimes confused with "The Gairdener and the Plooman" (which see). - RBW

Recordings

• Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger, "The Gairdener Chyld" (on SCMacCollSeeger01) {cf. Bronson's #6}

References

1. Child 219, "The Gardener' (3 texts)
2. Bronson 219, "The Gardener" (9 versions+3 in addenda, but #1 at least is "The Gairdner and the Plooman")
3. Leach, p. 577, "The Gardener" (1 text)
4. OBB 159, "The Gardener" (1 text)
5. DBuchan 55, "The Gardener" (1 text)
6. DT 219, GRDNRCHD*
7. Roud #339
8. BI, C219