5 Canadian Nature Poems You Need This Spring

Canadian poets are often revered for their poems of war or their rich poetry, describing the wealth of nature that covers our country. These poems are sure to get you in the mood for warmer seasons, even though a few of them are bittersweet. You may not be able to find physical copies of all of these poems, but the majority of them can be found online through poetry registries such as the Poetry Foundation. 

Archibald Lampman – “April in the Hills”

The first Archibald Lampman poem I ever read was “The Largest Life,” which is still hung on my walls. Archibald Lampman’s “April in the Hills” is a poem pulled from my copy of Lyrics of Earth and Other Poems. Although I am usually not a fan of rhyming poetry, I am in love with Lampman’s thick yet flowing descriptions of the melting season. He manages to perfectly encapsulate both the calmness of some species and the urgency of others. 

Al Pitman – “Dance of the Mayflies”

“Dance of the Mayflies” has been living on my walls for the past few years now. This poem, written by the Nova Scotian poet, conjures up a slightly unnerving yet beautiful set of images about these short-lived insects. It reminds me of my childhood: going to the lake and seeing their exoskeletons coat everything after they lived the best (and only) day of their lives. 

William Wilfred Campbell – “In the Spring Fields”

I often write nature poems for the WWC poetry contest, as he was from an area near my hometown. The awards ceremony for this contest was actually the first time I ever got to read my poetry aloud in front of an audience. “In the Spring Fields” is one of Campbell’s shorter poems, featuring older words that can sometimes make his work difficult to read. After a couple read-throughs, the poem comes alive through the many personifications of spring that Campbell leaves throughout.

Dorothy Livesay – “Green Rain”

These last two poems were both from a poetry book I randomly found at the thrift store. The book is 15 Canadian Poets (plus 5), and ever since I picked it up, I have been buying used books in droves. My favourite used bookstore in Waterloo is Old Goat Books in UpTown. Livesay’s poem “Green Rain” is an ode to her grandmother, written through the calm eyes of a sleepy child. 

P. K. Page – “After Rain”

P.K. Page often tells excitingly vivid stories about seemingly monotonous tasks, lives, and places. “After Rain,” like many of her poems, uses such precise and calculated language to convey Page’s stories. A personal favourite of mine is the imagery of “euclid in glorious chlorophyll, half drunk.” You can tell that not a single one of her words went to waste. 
 

• Canadian writers
• nature
• poetry
• spring