Daddy Takes Us Skating

called. Hal, who was anxiously looking to see if a

. Blake. "Did Roly-Poly come h

ans!" wailed Mab. "The

be seen some light green stems, some of them curved like the letter U upside dow

asked Mab, tea

e looked a

l wanted to know. "Did you upsi

ture did that

't like Mot

and they take with them the outside husk of the bean which is of no more use. The plant wants to get rid of it, you see, and as there is no room under ground for it, where it might be in the way of the roots, the leaves bring it up with the

they do seem to be growing upside down. That is the only

while others are yellow, or wax beans. Inside the pods, which are almost like peas, are small green beans. If they were allowed to stay on the vines the green beans inside the pods would

we planted, as I did not have time to get the poles. Then besides string beans, which is the sort in your garden, Mab, there are the larger

de down like Mab's bean

e tiny green spears, like blades of grass, coming up through the brown soil. It is then that crows like to

to keep the crow

is in the city and so near the house," said Mr. Bl

keep them awa

sked her

pants and stuff 'em with straw, and

a scare-crow

ld I make a scare-cro

ill have to begin to hoe away the weeds soon, and work around your rows of bean plants. Nothing makes garden

eds do to the b

of the soil the food that the beans need, so if you let weeds grow in your garden your bean plants would starve. It is just th

. It's the same with weeds. They are the bad giants that eat the good things in the soi

en other leaves appeared. By this time Hal's corn had begun to show green above the earth,

st be allowed to get their roots well down into the ground, to begin eating and drinking. A little baby, at first, does hardly

their parts of the garden, and the land around the Blake house loo

that ten dollar gold piece prize w

going to do?"

ywait. "I never yet had all the ice cream I w

wful lot of ice crea

children mustn't let him win the prize. Keep

the weeds that grew in between the rows of corn and beans. The earth was chopped up fine, for the childr

gh their leaves when it rains," said Daddy Blake. "A plant can

garden one day. "A lot of my bean leaves have holes

idn't! I wouldn't sh

cried Mab. "Will my b

I hope not. We'

in them. Daddy Blake looked carefully and found so

ed. "Here is

r to hear you say

on the weeds, bugs and beetles," said Mr. Blake

make him s

ves, so that when the beetles eat them t

won't they poison us when we

ed his father. "Besides there are no beans on Mab's plants yet. By the

allowed to grow in peace. That war was over. But other bugs and worms came in the Blake garden, and Daddy Blake, Uncle Pennywait and Aunt Lolly, as well as the children and their mother, were kept busy. The cut worms go

cabbage plants," said Daddy Blake, as

on cabbages-h

you," said

tying the paper with string. One end was shoved down in the ground, the other being close up aro

ever do," said Daddy Blake, "and after a while the cabbage sta

been kept covered with pieces of paper so the strong sun would not wilt them. They had been used to living in the house, where

y eat some of the things they had grown. Daddy Blake said Mab's beans might be ready to pick green, so they could be boiled, in about six weeks, but Hal's corn wo

" asked Mother Blake one day, when the Summer sun h

e with me, Hal and Mab. I'll take you to

en't ready y

teeny ears of corn on the st

," said Da

he himself had planted. Hal and Mab s

f them," direct

eaves, growing down in the grou

cried Mab, clapping

s!" exclaimed Hal. "

e are some white ones over here for you

lled up some long, white radishes.

planted-sooner even that the quickest beans. But of course radishes do not keep over winter. They must be eat

from their new garden, and Hal and Mab, who were a

little among the corn and beans before going to school, they heard a barking, whining

way! You're bad! Oh, com

addy Blake, jumping up from his c