The Contoocook runs straight through the middle of Bennington, past the mill and under the bridge, and the sound of it carries into the yards on either bank. Pleasant Pond Landscaping works that village and the hill roads climbing toward Crotched Mountain — grass cut and trimmed on schedule, edges recut where they have gone soft, mulch laid into the beds each spring. Clearing comes twice a year, first pulling the winter off the ground, later chasing maple and ash leaves down the slope. Overgrown ground is brought back, borders redrawn, thin lawns coaxed toward an even green. In a town this size the work is visible from the road, which is a fine reason to finish it properly.