The Bark River runs south through Delta County toward the bay, and the country it passes is old farm ground: hayfields, dairy barns, cedar in the wet spots, spruce along the fencerows. Deep Creek Land Management mows and trims out here, where a yard often runs right up against the field it was cut from. Summer is brief and bright and the grass makes the most of it, so the mowing holds a tight rhythm from June through September. Trimmed fence lines and a clean edge along the gravel are the difference between a yard that is cut and a yard that is kept. Clearing work at each end of the season takes the sticks, needles and drifted debris off the turf.