• by Adam Buckman , Featured Columnist, April 22, 2026

Just in the nick of time, charm returns to TV today, thanks to Zach Galifianakis.

He has come up with a short-form gardening series on Netflix that veers toward the offbeat, but still manages to stay in a lane where he pays homage to the agrarian life.

The six-part series, titled “This is a Gardening Show,” starts streaming Wednesday on Netflix.

In the show, we meet small farmers who take Galifianakis, 56, on a tour of their properties and school him in the art of raising their particular crops. 

In the two episodes the TV Blog previewed on Tuesday, these were apples in one episode and tomatoes in the other.

The whole thing is easygoing and entertaining. The show is a sea of calm amid the turbulence that characterizes so much of TV these days.

The TV Blog touched on this subject just in the last couple of days, citing two previewed series that were difficult to watch and impossible to get through.

One was the animated series, “Kevin,” that trafficked in off-putting, gratuitous vulgarity, and the other was a gloomy drama series, “Half Man,” that was laced liberally with violence and sadism.

This is why the sudden appearance of “This is a Gardening Show” at this particular moment was so welcome here at the world headquarters of the TV Blog.

Actor Galifianakis is best known for movies such as the “Hangover” series, his talk show “Between Two Ferns” and on television, the FX comedy “Baskets,” which won co-star Louie Anderson an Emmy.

In “This is a Gardening Show,” the actor adopts a demeanor of respectful bemusement and attentiveness as he discusses the ways and means of small-scale agriculture.

The show’s discussion segments consist of two parts. First, he is seen in conversations with schoolchildren to get their takes on the episode’s topics -- in this case, apples and tomatoes.

Then he meets the growers who teach him things he never knew about apples and tomatoes. 

Among other things, he learns how to graft apple trees and the best way to plant and water tomatoes.

At the outset of the show, Galifianakis says he is an avid gardener himself, which is evidently what led him to develop this show.

In addition to the segments with kids and farmers, the show is illustrated with very creative, artful animation. 

And the show’s chosen theme song, “Something In the Air” by Thunderclap Newman (1969), is a great touch,

For one day in the life of the TV Blog, peace is at hand.

“This is a Gardening Show” starts streaming Wednesday, April 22, on Netflix.