The North Shore Channel runs slow and green through the west side, and the path along Ladd Arboretum thaws before anything else in town does. That is the first honest sign of the season here — mud, redwing blackbirds, and lawns waking up unevenly across a single block. Diego & Gaby's Landscaping Co. picks the year up right there: spring cleanups first, then mowing, trimming and edging on a steady rotation once the ground firms enough to hold a machine. Beds get cleared of everything winter dropped into them, and the turf takes its first cut, which always looks better than it has any right to. From that morning until the last leaf comes down, the work is simply keeping the promise every week.