This Is a Gardening Show premieres April 22 on Netflix. (Earth Day!)
By Elazar Abrahams
I am not a gardener. I have never been a gardener. As an apartment renter in New York City, I have no plans to garden anytime soon.
And yet, after hearing Zach Galifianakis repeatedly say “the future is agrarian” in every episode of his new show, I find myself wondering if I should embrace the green thumb lifestyle.
This Is a Gardening Show is absolutely hilarious, surprisingly informative, and just a delightful little gem of a series, sure to make you smile.
The quick format is part of why it works so well. These episodes are 15-minute bites, and feel closer to YouTube videos than traditional TV docuseries. Each installment focuses on a different gardening-adjacent topic, like apples, stone fruit, or composting, and is a hybrid of documentary, travel show, and chatting with children. That last part is akin to the web show Recess Therapy, and is the highlight of each one. Kids just say the darndest things.
What surprised me most, though, is how earnest the whole thing is. If you know Galifianakis primarily from the early-2000s comedy boom or from Between Two Ferns, you might expect the show to be more sarcastic, more sneering, more “look at this silly thing I’m pretending to care about.” Instead, the series is genuinely sincere. It’s funny, obviously, but it also feels like he truly cares about what he’s learning and what he’s showing on screen. That sincerity comes through, and it makes the humor feel lighter and more generous than his brand sometimes suggests.
Plus, you’ll really learn something, including about grafting and the way growing food connects to the larger ecosystem we live in.
The season is over before you know it. Six short episodes, done. So even if you think you’re not going to like it, give this a try, because you might find yourself googling more about composting once the credits roll.
TV and City 