Late April in the Boardman River valley smells like cold water and cedar, and the grass along the township's low ground greens up before anybody is quite ready for it. Earth Friendly Lawn Care starts the season there, in the soft weeks, cleaning winter's litter out of the beds and off the turf so the sun can get down to the crowns. The first mow of the year is a careful one — high, slow, more haircut than harvest. After that comes the rhythm: mow, trim, edge, clear the walk, repeat, week after week until the maples let go. It is steady work in a beautiful corner of Grand Traverse County, and a yard that has been kept this way shows it by June.