Noon in late July, the fairways at Lincoln Hills shimmer, and every lawn in town is deciding whether to keep growing or go dormant. Gator Lawn Corporation mows straight through the heat of it, laying alternating passes that catch the light one way going out and another coming back. The rest is trimming, edging and cleanup — the details that turn a cut lawn into a finished one. Birmingham sits on deep soil under all that shade, and when the rain cooperates the color comes up rich and even. There is a plain pride in pulling out of a drive and seeing the stripes line up behind you.