Early summer garden tips and tour - plus mini meadow update
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- čas přidán 13. 07. 2024
- It's time to think about what you need to take out of your garden now, not just what you will be planting. Weeding and thinning out plants that spread, plus the latest on that difficult shady corner and the mini meadow update.
0:00 Welcome
0:32 The purple flower is Allium 'Purple Sensation'
1:30 The iris is 'Sable'
1:38 The pink rose is 'Gaujard' and the grey foliage is Artemisia
2:13 The low maintenance plants video is • 10 low maintenance pla...
3:38 The 'unknown' weed is celandine
3:47 The video on 'How to Win the Weeding Battle' is • How to weed your garde...
4:11 The blue flowers are Cerinthe major
4:19 The bright green plant is Euphorbia robbiae and the allium is 'Christophii'
6:13 What to do with a difficult shady corner: • Do you have a 'difficu...
7:46 Progress of the mini meadow in the front garden
9:12 The edging is called Everedge
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Love your understated, "Progress has not been particularly straight forward."
Brilliant video Alexandra! I am still developing my garden and your common sense yet gorgeous design ideas really help alot! Thank you!
Thank you!
The edging really looks good.
I would be tempted to also mow a strip along the edges, and leave the middle wild.
I believe it would really define the 'wild' as intentional.
* I appreciate all of your practical tips!
Your garden's looking lovely, Alexandra. I'm sure the front meadows will take some patience but you'll get there.
I like how the front yard looks with the edging and mulched areas. Your front yard is really coming along nicely. I struggle with patience and remembering to enjoy the process as much as the outcome when I garden.
Really excited to she what happens over time with the meadows.
Thank you, think it will take time!
@@TheMiddlesizedGarden Pretty great how we get to learn from watching. Once I saw that most people seem to recommend starting afresh, I put the idea aside. I know you may be wondering if you went the right way, but I do feel like you'll get there this way as well.
@@TheMiddlesizedGarden Oh, last year, I did leave a six-foot circle unmowed. It was a sort of cute tuft for a while, but then it got to be a tall floppy mess. I really did nothing except not mow it. I realized quite late that a rabbit had had her babies in there. This left a pretty large dirt area hidden inside. At the end of the season, I put a dappled willow standard in the circle, which was part of my original idea -- in addition to wanting to see what would happen with a spot of unmowed grass, I want something in that middle-of-the-lawn area so I could better imagine a tree or shrub there. It worked for that!
So much great info. Thanks. And that back corner is looking up after all your hard work! Btw you look especially lovely in that shade of blue with the pretty necklace👌. Happy gardening/weeding😊🌺🌼🐝💚
Oh thank you!
The mini meadow mess is really sweet.Meadows need a lot of space
We converted our boulevard strip (between sidewalk and road) into a mini-meadow and delineated it by mowing a border and a couple paths through it. It's amazing how intentional that makes it look (and of course now the flowers are blooming, even more so). We took the opportunity of the city digging it up for some work and reseeding it, to add our own seeds to the mix and it seems to have "taken" well.
That sounds brilliant.
I enjoy your videos very much. I find them very informative. My favorite is how you say good bye. You send us off so cheerfully. I love it!
Oh thank you!
Love your tips and tricks…of course I have to take into account my native plants… I do like seeing Queen Ann’s Lace growing in the fields near my home. It makes me feel as if you are just down the street🥰 Can hardly wait to see how the mini meadow looks in a couple of weeks!
I imagine the front lawn would be a bit of a pain to get a mower into anyway: around the side, up those steps and over the shrubs; or through the house (heaven forbid) - for little added effect. The meadow's an excellent idea to modernise your front garden 😊
Thank you! The mower is a small, light hover mower, but yes it is still a bit of a pain.
I'm fascinated with the wild garden!
Great as ever, very useful information to take onboard.
Thank you, I was lost trying to decide which way to go with my 12 acre farmhouse but after watching a number of your videos I have distilled many ideas down to a theme that is true to my style and and ethos . Thanks again.
So glad they have been helpful.
Thank your for your enjoyable and useful information, Alexandra. Your videos form part of my Saturday routine.
Btw, as you did not know the name of the weed in 3:37: It is Chelidonium majus, commonly known as greater celandine.
Hello Alexandra, it's always a pleasure to watch your videos. The weed with yellow flowers is chelidonium magus (Sorry, I don't know the English word). It is my favorite weed, because it helped me to get rid of my verruca! It heals!!! But take care it's spread the seeds. Greetings from Germany
Thank you! Sorry to be late answering this!
As mentioned by Inglish Home and garden, I also think a mown strip or two around the edge of the wild flower meadow would really define the meadow area. Just a thought. I admire you for trying and the idea behind it : )
I think it would look very nice. Not sure I can persuade my other half to do it though, he's keen on the meadow because it cuts down on mowing (although not, so far, on work overall!).
So glad to see you cautioning people against using gravel. No one ever mentions its drawbacks.
I think it's good in its place, but you're right, people often advise it for money-saving without mentioning that it needs quite a bit of care.
Minute 1:01, the back wall area/bench/topiaries etc, all look amazing this spring. The addition of the evergreens in large pots back there layered it to near perfection. I love your videos, kind lady.
Thank you!
Thank you again for the useful tips. Enjoy your updates!
Weeds definitely grow robustly in gravel. We had luck using high concentrate vinegar sprayed regularly. It’s a good alternative to toxic herbicides and works very well on a sunny day.
I enjoy your garden very much. I'm in Utah, USA and I've been fertilizing and watering variegated ground elder. It's sold here as a ground cover. I'm jealous of gardeners who have water naturally.
That's so interesting, because we have the non-variegated kind which certainly covers the ground (and everything else!). But I am beginning to wonder whether I should just accept it as ground cover. However I believe the variegated one (which is very pretty) is less invasive here.
Also Utah here, and I've been puzzled about people griping about ground elder since I've seen only the variegated kind planted on purpose. It makes more sense if it's less aggressive. Also, one of the greatest things about interacting with other gardeners on the internet is the ability to add regional nuance to the generic plant marketing information. The same plants perform differently in different climates (surprise! 😉 ) Like Melissa, I'm jealous of people who can have ground covers without watering. So far I only found 2 plants that do that here effectively: bindweed and everlasting pea. Bindweed - there were days I waweed. It's either getting better or I'm fooling myself to keep my sanity. It's no longer a lawn but a planting area, and really coming together, but the central area I'm trying to cover with a ground cover of thyme and sedum is still a work in progress.
The plant you like but don’t know the name of (at 3:37) looks very much like the celandine poppy, commonly known as the wood poppy (Stylophorum diphyllum), that I have in my garden and which grows wild in an adjacent wooded area. It is native to the eastern US and Ontario (where I live). I understand there is a close European relative (Chelidonium majus) that looks much the same as our native, so yours is much likelier to be this latter species. I love your videos by the way!
You're right, it's Chelidonium majus. Grows wild even here in Finland, it was probably brought up North by the medieval monks. It was widely used as a medicinal plant, even if it's actually pretty poisonous.
Also very good for dying natural fibers, in Finnish it's called "keltamo", which roughly translates as "yellowy". :D
Thank you!
Thank you, I enjoy your videos.
Yes you will need to weed like crazy especially at my old house which probably had more different kinds of quick growing vines than I can list .
Interesting and look forward to see what transpire in your front garden. Thanks for sharing 👍❤️😊
I love your videos. I always learn something from each one.
Thank you!
Beautiful garden 🌹 thank you for sharing 🙂
Beautiful garden 💐❤️❤️ beautifulll flowers 🌺🌺☘️☘️ Nd useful tips..
I love watching your videos... you are truly inspirational. Thank you for sharing
Thank you so much!
For yellow rattle, the website “wild your garden “ sells seeds and plug plants. His you tube channel is also worth a watch. Thanks Mel
Thank you, he's been in touch, and I'll be interested to talk to him.
I love the structure in your garden and also the different levels
Thank you so much - and I think your garden is so beautiful, too.
One year we mowed a path through our lawn and left it to grow as a wild meadow as it looked so beautiful at the time. The problem was after the flowers had died the grass turned yellow and brown and it looked awful and took an age to recover so I came to the conclusion that meadows have a place in the fields around us but not in a small or meadow sized garden especially if you’ve got beautifully maintained borders.
Interesting!
Yes, same thing happened to me! The long grass looked beautiful with all the wild flowers and then autumn came, it flopped and took me so long to mow it, as the lawnmower couldn’t cope with such long grass, the grass at the base was wet, the mower kept on getting blocked . I thought to myself I’m never letting the grass grow this long again! and like you it took till the following year for the grass to recover. Now I only let the grass grow a few inches for the clover to come through and then it gets cut!
Brilliant video! 👏🏻
...and it looks like we're all fighting those perennial weeds at the moment. They've really been loving this spring 🙄
Oh, they have! Thank you.
Like your shade area corner idea . Need to us that brick wall with climbers to suit. I have extended into pasture field tow more garden rooms and find I now need to fence all in around 5 aces to stop Deer using my top of estate garden world as salad bar.Bang goes my new car this year ,Still once fences go up all will look and survive much better .
Yes, good fences make such a difference.
Really useful thank you. Im in the process of separating the rear of my garden inorder to let it grow wild into something that will hopefully resemble a mini meadow so any further updates on yours will be fab thanks
Thank you for your videos
Glad you like them!
So much good information! I'm planting lawn grass right now. I thought of doing something similar and this gives me a lot of ideas, thank you 💕💕🌞🌞
Thank you!
Love your yard
Thank you!
You are so interesting. Really enjoyed this.
I found Yellow Rattle in the wilds, took some seeds of it and was sowing them into the part of my former garden lawn, which I transitioned to a little meadow. Yes, it worked.
Hi Alexandre
I could listen to you taking all day
I really like your front garden it's looking good
Have a good week xx💙💚💛💜
Thanks so much
❤❤
Lasy year I made some gravel paths. I put thick professional grade landscape weed barrier down underneath and cardboard under that. This spring I have some grass (like a native weedy grass) coming right up through the landscape fabric!! I couldn’t believe it. Weeding is a gardening fact. Nature always finds a way to out fox our best efforts 😂
I've had exactly the same experience! Nature is definitely in charge.
Idk, I don’t think a very formal front garden which already has a lot of established garden plants is the best place for a wild flower meadow. Besides the aesthetics, which I don’t think fits, I suspect it’s not that easy to establish and maintain a self sustaining meadow in a small area.
For something that looks natural and wildlife friendly I think I would go for clover (or something similar). I have a driveway and yard that is overrun by white clover. It has self seeded from nearby meadows, it’s basically zero maintenance because it’s a creeping plant that hardly ever needs a mow and it’s packed full of flowers for a long time.
Anyway, leaving the clover meadow idea aside, I am sure it’s possible to find wildflowers plants in plugs to use instead of sowing.
I think you're right about the formal front garden not combining well with meadow, but I'm still going to see if I can make it work....there is something not quite right about the combination of meadow and shrubs, but I'm going to give it a couple of years. Then I'll have to own up to its being a mistake...definitely should use wildflower plugs.
Based on my own expérience, meadow takes 3 years to be nice
Time for birds, wind and seeds to do their jobs without walk on the ground to squeeze it.
That's good to bear in mind, thank you.
I had the same problem last year in allowing my lawn to grow so that initially it looked unkempt and neglected; but it improved as rye grass and naturally flowering, non-invasive weeds such as daisy, butter-cup etc took over in parts starting in June to September. Hence this year I'm working with nature to grow a particular type of meadow that's natural for the area rather than fixated by the idea that it has to be of one type. Also, Jane Moore's advice in making it look intentional is so profoundly true since weeds can either signify neglect and laziness or intelligent creativity depending upon how they're used in a garden. Personally, I'd ditch the artificial edging and instead mow around the perimeter and down the center say to create two zones.
Thank you!
V useful, thanks
I live in Canada Born in England 🇬🇧 but I want a garden just like yours.
I don't know if the weed barrier materials sold in the UK is different than here in the US, but I've used it where I have difficult weed and ground cover problems by adding garden soil to the top of it, like mini raised beds, and planting on top of it. It blocks out the more stubborn weeds, and it makes it easier to remove self seeding weeds. Roots of ground cover type weeds peel off easily if they get in on top. For plans planted in the ground, cut an X or * opening, not a hole. Then the plants push thru the opening, rather than a hole that leaves a gap. I also put it under all mulched areas, including those of gravel. Self seeding weeds in gravel can be raked out, rather than pulled out of the ground.
I think that the weed barriers are probably much the same, your success is due to your managing your garden well because you're still removing the weeds when they do pop up. It's when people think weed barriers will stop all weeds and that they don't have to weed that disappointment sets in! Good tip re the X.
🌱🌿🌱ALWAYS INFORMATIVE ‼️🌱🌿🌱🌱🌿🌱ALWAYS ENJOYABLE ‼️🌱🌿🌱
Thank you!
Great video! My beagle like to dig holes in fresh earth so I use a sturdy weed suppressing fabric around areas where I have planted new shrubs or larger perennial plants. The fabric discourages her digging although I also use tall decorative fencing for extra insurance. I'd prefer using only cardboard otherwise! I use a cedar wood chips as mulch as well as compost, both rather pricey! But so effective. ☺️💚
That's a good point!
hi the yellow buttercup type weed you like looks like herb bennet , fantastic videos thanks for all your hard work 👍
Thank you!
I always put down cardboard or thick layer of newspaper down, wet it and then mulch. Keeps light from germinating weed seeds.
Really useful thank you Alexandra. It's inspired me to get going this weekend on the weeding too.
So true that we just have to weed, and I will never use fabric again
Hi Alexandra,
I had to research growing like the clappers 😉
Enjoyed the video
Thank you, Karla
I wondered if people might be confused!
Keep those English phrases coming. I love learning them!
🧑🌾🇨🇦🧑🌾I suppose our garden is Middle size as well. Nice to visit with you Alexandra!
Thank you!
You are welcome and welcome to visit us virtually!
I understand you’re reasoning for the “meadow” in the front but I feel like it’s too small to get the right effect. The style of architecture seems to clash, as well. A really formal front and a dreamy meadow in back (the very back) seems to me, more practical and appropriate.
I know you didn’t ask for my opinion, 😆 but I really love your channel and think if you as my gardening friend…… so, there you go.
I also love self seeders! I have many of the same.
I think you are right, and it is something I have thought myself. But I wanted to try it out, especially for the wildlife. It might work, although I wouldn't put it any stronger than that. I did try at one point to find out what the original owners of the house would have put in this space, as lawn grasses weren't really invented when it was built, but there is so little information out there.
@@TheMiddlesizedGarden I’m sure whatever you end up doing it will still be lovely!!
Lawn, cultivated,as a contrast to borders is relevant for small space
Yes, I think that's a very valid point of view and one we may revert to!
the plant at 3:39 is called celandine or swallowwort (chelidonium majus). the yellow sap was historically used to treat warts, it is slightly toxic.
Thank you!
What you consider rather warm for your climate is my ideal temperature.
Yesterday, we reached about 37 degrees Celsius (100 Fahrenheit) and today is only slightly "cooler."
I'm trying to clear away weeds (wild campanula) to make space for a mail-order clematis I received a few days ago.
Thinking I was smart, I brought out an umbrella to shade me as I went to work in the hot sun. It's extremely windy today and perfect condition for setting my open umbrella skyward. Epic fail.
Gasp! I think I'd fade in that heat, I certainly couldn't garden. Hope your umbrella returned from its flight.
@@TheMiddlesizedGarden
I guess one gets used to the heat, that's what I've heard from people living in southern states. But not when just a week earlier it was cool enough to need a jacket. (My house does not have air conditioning.)
Yes, I chased my umbrella into the neighbors' yard and collapsed it. Even then the wind still tried to capture it.
I really enjoy your blog and advice or observations. I'm wondering if you would consider adding the name of plants on the screen that you show in the garden. Oftentimes there is a plant which I don't know the name, and I'd love to know if it would thrive in my zone.
Lovely vlog. I've stopped using bark chippings in favour of straw mulch. I heard the chippings deplete Nitrogen from the soil. I am also finding that the straw stops slugs & snails which is fantastic! I may be able to have Dahlias in my border again! I using wool mulch for my pot Dahlia and it has completely stopped slugs & snails
Thank you! I've used some straw mulch in the veg beds and so far, so good.
Thank you for this.I have recently cut back some Euphorbia. I had no idea how toxic the milky sap is.I ended up at 'Minor Injuries' with a very sore eye. Fortunately there has been no long lasting damage but it was an uncomfortable reminder to wear gloves and not touch eyes.
Oh, that is terrible. A friend had the same experience. I hope your eye is better soon, and thank you for the reminder. I try to remember to say that you have to be careful with euphorbia, but I forgot that time.
I am experiencing an explosion in my garden. Irises and tulips that had not bloomed my first 2 years here are in full bloom, some colors I didn't even know were there. But the irises that bloomed before have more blooms, too. I have a second year holly hock that is simply ENORMOUS! The others are quite large, as well, but this one is gigantic. I don't know what happened here, though I am thoroughly pleased with the explosion of color. I am all about perennials and self seeding plants, too.
That sounds lovely!
Your garden is gorgeous! I’ve heard of wildflower plugs to go into mini meadows, so you don’t have to rely on seed germinating you can just dig out a clump of grass and replace with a wild flower plug. Something you could try perhaps?
Yes, it is - I had actually tried to grow my own wildflower plugs, but two of the plants didn't germinate, although the third did. And then I'd left it too late to order from the shops...just as well, I think, as they would have been trampled, but I will be more organised in future. Thank you!
👍✨
Good morning from Barbados, Alexandra! Your spring garden is absolutely lovely! Cannot wait to see how the meadow plantings do.
Freak ash clouds came all the way from Mount Soufriere in St. Vincent and covered my garden in 4 inches of grey soot in April. While I did not lose too many plants, I'm looking forward to widening and brightening my full sun cottage border and shade gardens over July. Any DIY tips for paving a seating areas under trees that drop lots of leaves? Also recycling old stone garden benches? Thanks in advance.
That's a tricky one (sorry to be so late answering this). I would only say don't use gravel under trees that drop leaves because it will be so hard to clear up. I think pavers of any kind will be fine, but it may be worth checking that they don't stain (I think Limestone can be tricky). Hope it goes well!
@@TheMiddlesizedGarden Appreciate your advice anytime, Alexandra. Have decided to fill the spaces between the pavers with shade loving ground cover. Then surround the little paver patio with plants that can take dry shade. Will need to research what plants may work best at my local plant shop. Btw, enjoying your recent videos on designing and tending English cottage borders ... I watch and rewatch to adapt the principles for my patch. Thanks!
Yellow rattle is pretty and has a curious flare to it.
I was noticing the diagonal pattern of the walkway and wondered if you will include any of those lines with the intentional mowed effect the garden designer mentioned.
Interesting suggestion! But I think probably not - the area is a bit too small.
I used the same metal edging about two months ago and it looks great. However I hit so many buried stones etc. when fixing it I wonder if my garden is on the top of an old gravel pit. 😀
Oh dear, I think a lot of our gardens have quite a lot buried in them.
I agree with removing the spreaders and re-seeders for all the reasons given. I spent months over summer (here in Melbourne) removing seedlings of verbena bonariensis which looked so good the year before when they flowered right up to the frosts of winter and apparently, seeded all over the garden. 🙄 Finally a layer of bush mulch saw them off - this autumn! Hopefully, there are no seeds left under the mulch but I certainly won't be growing that plant ever again. Getting rid of thriving seedlings is heartbreaking, however. I hate putting them in the compost. They are living things. Sometimes, I furtively plant them in my adult children's gardens and hope that they don't notice. From time to time, they will ask, "Mum, do you know what that plant is over there?" hahaha 😁 As for your meadow areas, my suggestion is to review what is planted in the normal borders around the meadow patches as I suspect that the blending of the two areas will be quite a challenge. While they are different areas, they should still complement each other. Eg See flagstone path at Great Dixter by searching for "Required Reading: Meadows at Great Dixter and Beyond"
If done successfully, the front garden will be truly amazing. I can't wait to see how it pans out. All the best...
Planting surreptitiously 😂. Sneaky lady!
@@eileenmc8808 😁
Thank you, that's a good point. Yes, I feel awful when I pull out plants that are thriving but in a place where I don't want them.
There is Yellow Rattle in Miriam Rothschild's "Farmer's Nightmare" Wildflower mix.
Love the edging, is it possible to to remove small plug areas in the meadow and plant seedlings or seed.
Yes, it is and that's worked very well for several friends of mine.
Alexandra, the name of the plant you like is Chelidonium majus. It is supposed to have some medicinal properties.
Thank you!
Never had much luck with Cerinthe, must try again next year. Are you going to Hampton I wonder ?
Yes, I'll be there. Looking forward to it, although even the thought is quite exhausting!
@@TheMiddlesizedGarden I’ll be there on the cultivar greenhouse stand. If you fancy dropping by please do 😎
Oh dear. After writing that comment at the beginning of this video, I see you did add names. Thank you. Perhaps even more names? Not when there is a multitude of plants, but when there are a couple.
I'm trying to add names where possible - I do agree with you that names are helpful. Also when people ask about a specific plant, I sometimes add it to the list of time stamps in the description below.
How to create a luscious lawn without chemicals would be interesting
It would. And I'll definitely do a lawn video at some point - it's a question of finding the right expert who can make it interesting and not just give the standard advice.
The plant you do not know is stylophorum lasiocarnum, there is a double form which my son has .I have never come across the double form in any books.
Thank you.
Bindweed 😢😢 my neighbour has a over 60ft bed just have bindweed. They keepy spreading to my side, I need to keep checking and digging every day, we did offer to clear the bindweed for her as she is not doing gardening, but she said she doesn't mind them. 😭 living here for 6 years, digging everyday :(
Oh, dear, that is difficult.
I rather like pulling weeds by hand. It doesn't bother me much. It feels like I am spending time with my flowers. Actually this year is my first year gardening I have grown all my flowers from seeds I have noticed the June bugs love to eat my seedlings so I leave some leave in weeds so they have other things to eat I have noticed it works. I hate to kill anything but I have started to kill junebugs. They are awful little things I have 2.5 acres of trees and grass and they only choose to attack my flowers.
It can be quite meditative to pull weeds by hand. Good luck with the June bugs.
If you are trying to put in a meadow garden you really should try to get rid of as much of that grass as you can. It is too much competition for any other plants to grow. You can put a tarp over the area and let it sit for a couple of months, or until the grass looks good and dead. Then you can sew some meadow mix seeds. Or you could go really wild and not sew anything at all and let nature take its course, weeding out any unwanted or invasive plants as things begin to grow. My suggestion would be a combination, sewing seeds of plants you are happy with and letting some plants grow naturally there. Happy gardening!
And the bees?
So true here in south texas...if u have grass its.503.bermuda
.aka highway bermuda...u can not.kill it with out harsh chemicals
I.can try to.deprive.it of.sun.and it.will.make more roots.and eventually a.weedless patch of it. U can try and bake it out with plastic.covering.that creates heat of.about 150 to.175f!!!
.it slows it.down.
But it atill.is there andnso.are.the.seeds. itnwoll.choke.out all.weeds.and make.a.great easy.care.lawn..but its a nightmare.
Thank you so much... I'm adopting the minimal invasion strategy, which I think will take longer but won't disturb the current wildlife especially the mining bees which live in the lawn.
What does "Growing like a bunch of clappers" after the rain mean? Or did I misunderstand the statement? I liked it whatever it meant. lol Just curious. PS. I have a Mini Meadow now too because of you.
I sometimes realise -too late - that I've used some slang which may not be understood everywhere (and is probably outdated even in the UK). When something 'goes like the clappers', it means 'very fast'. It dates from the time when urgent news was signalled by the church bells or 'clappers' and that was the fastest way of getting a message round. So it dates back a bit...Nice to hear about your mini meadow!
Mulch means.snails.and.bugs for me
I have never come across any book that tells you that hardy osteospmums and hardy nemesias self seed freely. I must have dug up hundreds and given many away over the years.Also I have found the RHS to be completely wrong when describing plants.
My brothers dog lost half his foot treading on the neighbours metal edge x
Omg
Wow ,poor dog
OMG thank you for mentioning that, great point!
Thank you, my husband read this comment and has banged the edge down further so it can't cut anyone.
Once gravel is down it’s there forever
As long as cultivation prevails why not grow some weeds and allow mess
There are lots of weeds here - I can't believe how many. I'm beginning to think that cultivation hasn't prevailed.
@@TheMiddlesizedGarden same in my garden...
Are you “Chelsea chopping”?
Not this year, although I suspect I may regret it. I did pinch out a few asters though.
Goodbye!!!
Comfrey in.shade...NO.WONDER.MINE.DIED
Mine gets full sun and is doing great in its third year. Zone six
You say it so calmly and evenly about the weeds. When I hear whining about weeds and what to do about them I lose it. YOU PULL THE WEEDS OUT, IDIOTS! The blatant disregard of reality really irritates me. .