The East Branch of the Owego Creek runs the length of Newark Valley, and the lawns follow it — flat bottomland yards down in the village, then the steeper ones climbing out toward the pastures on either side. R & W Lawn and Outdoor Services LLC mows both kinds: cut and trimmed on a set week, a straight edge run along the walks, and nothing left on the pavement when the truck pulls out. Spring cleanups lift the winter mat off the grass so it can green up early, and the autumn round keeps Tioga County's leaf fall from smothering it. Slopes are mowed with the grain of the land, which is how a hillside yard stays a lawn instead of turning into a scar. There is a satisfaction in stripes lying straight across a yard that is not flat at all.