Putting in the Seed

“Putting in the Seed” rhymes ababababcdcdee and the meter is iambic pentameter, meaning there are five iambs (an iamb is a two-syllable foot where an unstressed syllable is followed by a stressed syllable) per line. There are only three feet where the meter varies. First, Line 6 begins with a stressed (or accented) syllable followed by an unstressed syllable: mín • gled, which is a trochee, not an iamb. Second, Line 14 begins, “Shouldering,” which is also a trochee. Third, the poem ends “earth crumbs” (Line 14): Here are two stressed syllables in a row, also known as a spondee.

Even with these three irregularities, the meter is remarkably consistent. Most iambic pentameter poems of this length have more than three moments of metrical variation. The regularity of the meter in “Putting in the Seed” is suggestive of the trance-like devotion with which the speaker plants. The meter is largely uninterrupted because the speaker is focused on planting and does not want his work interrupted. Finally, metrical consistency is a hallmark of Frost’s work and many other Frost poems display this regularity.