Plein air painters go outdoors to chase the light, and in Santa Maria the light is worth the chase: soft and pearly as the morning marine layer burns off, then scrubbed bright by the wind that rushes up the valley from the ocean nearly every afternoon. PleinAire Design Group cares for lawns in this valley town of strawberry fields and vineyards, keeping yards mowed, trimmed and neatly finished. That steady sea breeze dries turf quickly and scatters leaves, and the calm before the gusts is a gentle hour for a cut. The result has the composition of a good landscape canvas — even color, clean outlines, nothing stray in the frame. On a Saturday, with red-oak smoke from a tri-tip grill drifting over the fences, it is a fine thing to stand and admire.