North of the city the valley flattens toward Homer and the hayfields run right up to the dooryards, so June smells like cut grass for miles. D & L Landscaping works both halves of the Cortland year: mowing, string trimming, bed edges and seasonal cleanups while the ground is green, then plows, shovels and ice control once the valley turns white. Snow funnels down this corridor in a hurry, and the crew's habit is to be out ahead of it rather than behind. A lawn striped level and a driveway scraped to the blacktop are the same accomplishment, six months apart. Both of them say the place is being looked after.