Manahawkin Lake sits in the middle of things, held by an old dam, and in April its far bank goes green a week before anyone's yard does. Carey Landscaping takes that as the starting gun — first cuts, spring cleanups, beds opened back up after a winter of salt wind and leaf litter. Lawns near the lake wake unevenly, shade on one side and full sun on the other, so they get read that way rather than mowed all at one height. By May the stripes hold and the borders are drawn again. Spring in Stafford Township is short and generous, and the work is to meet it on time.