GROSSE POINTE PARK -- Mil Anthony doesn't get paid for sharing her love of gardening as the host of a weekly half-hour show, "Pointes of Horticulture," on the Grosse Pointe cable channel. But with the arrival of spring she turns a profit by turning the soil in other people's yards and gardens.

"I took my hobby and made it into a business," she said.

Anthony grew up on a North Carolina farm, and with a warm Southern drawl she gives her television audience practical advice on how to cultivate beautiful surroundings while keeping maintenance to a minimum.

Many people prefer to have her do the work. A Southern Gardener Inc., a home-based business Anthony started in 1994, has two crews of three gardeners preparing residential yards for the growing season. They fertilize and edge flower beds, cut back decorative grasses, prune bushes, and get a head start on the weeding that will continue throughout the summer. They also install new plantings designed by Anthony.

Rosemary Hastings of Grosse Pointe Farms turned to A Southern Gardener because weeding bored her. Anthony transformed an overgrown yard into an interesting array of perennial plantings accented with the vibrant colors of annual impatiens.

"She took over and I'm thrilled," said Hastings, who has A Southern Gardner return every three weeks or so to maintain the plantings. "Everyone who comes to my house admires my garden."

Anthony earned the designation of master gardener by taking Michigan State University Extension classes. She is president of the Association of Professional Gardeners, which has more than 50 members, mostly women in Metro Detroit who operate small businesses like hers.

They're all very busy at this time of year, according to Janet Macunovich, the owner of Perennial Favorite in Waterford and a founder of the Michigan School of Gardening in Livonia.

"Unless you can find experienced and knowledgeable seasonal help, you won't be able to handle all the calls we get," Macunovich said.

Macunovich sees a growing number of clients who want to spend more time enjoying their yards without taking on a lot of maintenance. That trend has opened up an occupation for women looking for a job outdoors with flexible hours.

Since most of her gardeners have school-age children, Anthony limits her work crew schedule to 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., although she often works into the evening meeting clients and planning future work. "My motto is family first," she said.

Revenues of $158,000 last year included a contract to maintain municipal plantings along Jefferson Avenue in Grosse Pointe Park. Anthony charges $45 an hour for her time in the garden and between $37 and $40 for her workers, who are independent contractors. She charges $100 an hour as a landscape design consultant.

When paperwork threatened to keep her away from the gardening work she loves, Anthony hired a part-time bookkeeper to get out the bills and keep track of the accounts.

According to Macunovich, Anthony sets a good example for her peers with her structured approach to a business that grew out of a hobby. "She has made a concerted study of the business end," Macunovich said.