Ladd sits up on the high ground with the Illinois River valley opening out to the south, and on a summer morning the haze lies down in that valley like water in a bowl. River Landscaping & Tree Service keeps the yards along the village's straight little streets and out on the county roads toward Spring Valley, mowing on schedule and trimming close to the porch steps and the old brick foundations. Edges get cut sharp where lawn meets walk, because on blocks this tight the details are what people see. Spring cleanups clear away what winter left behind, and the fall rounds take the leaves before the wind can move them next door. The result is a yard that looks looked-after from the sidewalk, which in a small town is the whole idea.