See, lady Moon, where my love came from. "For I would have come, yes, by sweet Eros, I would have come, with two or three friends, as soon as night fell, with apples of Dionysus in the fold of my cloak, and on my head white poplar, the holy plant of Heracles, twined all round with purple ribbons.

He describes the serenade he would have brought: two or three friends at nightfall, apples tucked into his cloak, and a garland of white poplar tied with purple ribbons. Apples were the usual gift of lovers, and they are "of Dionysus" because, as Athenaeus says, quoting this very line, Dionysus discovered the apple along with the other fruits (Deipnosophists, book 3). The white poplar, λεύκη, was Heracles' tree; Pausanias says Heracles found it growing beside the river Acheron and brought it to Greece (5.14.2). It suits a young athlete: Heracles was a patron of the gymnasium.