Spring Snapshot

This time of year things are looking their best

Author’s photo

The other day a man named Landon came by with a couple of other men from his landscaping business to tidy up my yard and put down some mulch. I learned about Landon from the tree outfit that keeps the 100-foot pin oak trees on either side of my house in shape.

Landon also helped me this past fall with cleaning up all the leaves from the oaks. At first I thought I would be able to manage the leaves on my own. I’d bought an electric leaf blower and using it thrilled me.

The first time I aimed it at the back deck it sent the mat by the door sailing off into a nearby holly tree. And I loved sweeping it from side to side as I moved along the yard, watching the leaves roll and crest like ocean waves.

But after a point I began to feel overmatched. I was unable to keep up. Every couple of days leaves would thickly blanket the yard. I started asking around for help. Through the tree company, I discovered Landon.

Landon is probably about half my age, early 30’s. He’s stocky with burred blond hair and some eager, appealing hustle. He started his enterprise half a dozen years ago.

“Yes, ma’am,” he said when he stopped by to give me an estimate for his work this spring, making a note on the pad of paper he held in one hand. “Sure, that’s no problem! I can take care of this Tuesday if that’s okay with you!” It was. And he did.

They started with cutting the grass. It had grown unevenly and become pretty shaggy. They trimmed it down from about half a foot to four inches. It looks a little bit like Landon’s hair now, thick and full, except, of course, it’s green.

After taking care of the grass, Landon and his colleagues blew out and raked up some leaves leftover from the fall. They also swept up the grass trimmings. Then they used a couple of wheelbarrows to bring in some mulch from the bed of a truck that Landon had pulled around to an alley by the back gate of my yard.

They spread the mulch using pitchforks, tucking it up under azaleas, rhododendrons, magnolia stellata, and some box bush, in a layer about three inches deep. It’s dark and fragrant. It smells warm, earthy.

Author’s photo

I find it very centering both in the way it looks and how it smells. It has a reassuring, peaceful reality to it, like,

This is Nature. This is Good. Everything is where it is supposed to be and happy to be doing its thing. Thank you.

All in all Landon’s visit lasted about three hours. Each day since then, I have been appreciating how everything seems to be looking its best right now, the trees filled out, the shrubs flowered and full.

The only downside is that the leaves of the oaks now block out some of the sun that used to find its way into my favorite room, brightening and warming it during the fall and winter. But the upside to that is that when the dog days of summer get here, and they will, they’ll offer some much-needed shade to help keep things cool.

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