It is a cumulative song, similar to "The Twelve Days of Christmas", as it has a list at the end of each verse which grows throughout the piece.
The Roud index lists 180 versions collected from oral tradition in English, and the song has analogues in French, Italian and German as well.
[1] In 1877, water-colour painter and folk-song collector Miss Marianne Harriet Mason (1845 -1932) published a version called "Green Grass Grows all Around" in "Nursery Rhymes and Country Songs".
[2] During a performance, it is typical for the song to increase in speed with each additional verse, almost as a challenge to determine who can sing the lyrics the fastest without getting mixed up.
County Durham folk singer Ed Pickford added further verses going as far as an amoeba, in the process creating a popular drinking game as players try to keep up.