Sunday Hymn - for Gardeners

All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small; 

all things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all. 

But what we never mention, though gardeners know it is true, 

when he made the goodies, He made the baddies too.

All things spray and swattable, disasters great and small, 

all things paraquatable, the Lord God made them all.

The greenfly on the roses, the maggots in the peas, 

manure that fills our noses, He gave us all of these.

The fungus on the goose-gogs, the club root on the greens, 

the slugs that eat the lettuce, and chew the aubergines.

The drought that kills the fuchsias, the frost that nips the buds, 

the rain that drowns the seedlings, the blight that hits the spuds.

The midges and mosquitoes, the nettles and the weeds, 

the pigeons in the green stuff, the sparrows in the seeds.

The fly that gets the carrots, the wasp that eats the plums, 

how black the gardener’s outlook, though green may be his thumbs.

But still we gardeners labour midst vegetables and flowers, 

and pray what hits our neighbours will somehow bypass ours. 

All things bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small; 

all things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all.