October takes its time in St. Francis: a few frosted mornings, then a run of warm afternoons that keeps the grass going right to the end. Mowing carries on through it — one more pass in the low Saturday light — and then the leaves become the whole job, off the lawn, out of the beds, cleared from the drive before rain mats them in place. The rest of the year the routine holds: weekly cutting, trimming along the foundation and the flower beds, a clean edge on the walk. None of it is complicated; it only has to happen on time and go all the way into the corners. A yard put to bed properly is a fine sight heading into winter.