Top 10 Garden Poems for Funerals

Gardens are places of growth, beauty, and natural cycles, mirroring life's own ebb and flow. It's no wonder that garden poems for funerals resonate so deeply, offering imagery that comforts and connects us to the eternal process of renewal. For those who cultivated love as they did their gardens, these poems become a fitting homage, chosen by families and funeral directors alike to celebrate and remember a life well lived. 

Whether included in a funeral invitation, recited as a moving funeral quote, or shared amongst loved ones at a wake, garden-themed poetry provides a tranquil backdrop of growth, reflection, and peace. Here are ten garden poems for funerals that beautifully articulate the enduring legacy of those we've lost, planting seeds of cherished memories in the gardens of our hearts.

1. "God’s Garden" by Dorothy Frances Gurney

"The kiss of the sun for pardon,

The song of the birds for mirth."

Gurney's poem is a beloved choice, rich with garden imagery that evokes the serene beauty and peace we wish for our departed loved ones.

2. "Come to My Garden" by Christina Rossetti

"Come to my garden walk, my love.

Pass by the fervid flowers that wait for thee."

Rossetti extends an invitation to a shared sanctuary, a metaphor for joining a loved one in eternal rest and the beauty of what awaits.

3. "The Garden of Proserpine" by Algernon Charles Swinburne

"Here, where the world is quiet;

Here, where all trouble seems."

Swinburne's poem offers solace, painting death as a tranquil garden where rest and escape from life's troubles can be found.

4. "In Flanders Fields" by John McCrae

"In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row."

Though a poem about war, McCrae's vivid depiction of poppies growing amongst soldiers' graves provides a powerful image of life persisting amidst loss, a theme often echoed in funerals.

5. "A Dirge" by Percy Bysshe Shelley

"Rough wind, that moanest loud

Grief too sad for song."

Shelley's reflection on mourning and the cycle of life and death aligns with the natural rhythms of a garden, offering a poignant perspective for a funeral setting.

6. "The Garden of Love" by William Blake

"I went to the Garden of Love,

And saw what I never had seen."

Blake explores the transformation of life, with the garden as a space where joy becomes mingled with sorrow, a concept that resonates at funerals.

7. "One is nearer God's heart in a garden" by Dorothy Frances Gurney

"Than anywhere else on earth."

This line from Gurney's poem has become a standalone funeral quote, symbolising the closeness to the divine and the eternal that gardens represent.

8. "I Died for Beauty" by Emily Dickinson

"And so, as kinsmen met a night,

We talked between the rooms."

Dickinson's poem, while not specifically about gardens, touches on themes of beauty, nature, and the afterlife that complement a garden's metaphorical connection to life and death.

9. "To Daffodils" by Robert Herrick

"Fair Daffodils, we weep to see

You haste away so soon."

Herrick's lament for the brief lifespan of flowers serves as a metaphor for human mortality, reminding us of the fleeting nature of life, often reflected upon during funerals.

10. "Requiem" by Robert Louis Stevenson

"Under the wide and starry sky,

Dig the grave and let me lie."

Stevenson's call for a final resting place in the embrace of nature aligns with the theme of gardens as a final, peaceful sanctuary.