April in Clay is mud and promise — the Cold Springs stretch soft underfoot, snowbanks shrinking to gray ridges, first green pushing up right where the plow piles finally gave in. Joe's Landscaping meets the year there, raking out what winter left behind, getting the earliest cuts down, then mowing and trimming week after week until the leaves come off again. When the calendar flips, the same driveways get plowed and the same walks get opened. It is unglamorous, dependable work, and a lawn that looks sharp in June was mostly decided back in April. That is the part worth doing slowly and doing right.