PHOTO GALLERY
There’s always some strange, interesting, beautiful or fun going on here at the Acre, so I carry a camera. Just in case.
Video: Windy Day
We've got some pretty strong Santa Anas blowing today. It's hard to tell from this video, but those fan palms are close to 60 feet tall and swaying more than 20 feet in either direction in the gusts.
AROUND THE ACRE
Weathercam
Live camera shot facing west toward the Pacific Ocean, which is about 5 miles away.
Camera updates every 2 minutes.
→ Live Camera
→Wunderground
Weather Forcast
48°F
HOME & GARDEN
Make a DIY Bucket Air Conditioner
Build a simple and efficient portable room air conditioner for about $30 with a couple of buckets, some pipe, a jug of cold water and a cheap desk fan
Hot Sauce Batch 20 – Entry 3
It's the first day of Autumn and the peppers are coming in hot and heavy. I'm picking around one pound every couple of days right now, which means I'll be moving the peppers to the five gallon fermenter this week. The weather has been very warm so the initial ferment is off to a good start. It smells spicy and yeasty, which tells me the lacto ferment is happy. Once I pitch it to the big fermenter, things should really take off.
Keyhole Garden Update – Sept. 21, 2020
It's day 548 of production for the keyhole garden. The recent heatwave ended what was left of the tomatoes and most of the sweet peppers, but the squash is doing great. Plus, I discovered some garlic.
Build a Bee Hotel
Here in the Western U.S., native bees are solitary and great pollinators. They nest in the fall and hatch in the spring. Here's how I built a Bee Hotel to welcome them into my garden
Operation “No Fruit Left Behind” Continues
We're trying to not let any of the garden produce go to waste this year (much to the chicken's disappointment), so we've been canning, drying, pickling and preserving everything possible.
Sweet Pepper Season
Sweet peppers are ripe so we're pickling and roasting today so we can preserve them for later. Pickled peppers are delicious and super easy to make with this recipe.
HOME & GARDEN
FOOD & RECIPES
Making Summer Pickles
If you love authentic dill pickles, there's nothing better or simpler to make than old fashioned deli-style summer pickles. This recipe dates back to 1900 and uses just a few spices and natural fermentation to make some of the best homemade pickles you'll ever taste. No refrigeration or fancy gadgets required.
Blackberry Jam Class of 2020
This year's "jam session" yielded about 3 gallons of blackberry and raspberry jam. We picked a little more than 20 lbs of fruit and used this foolproof recipe
Scallop Squash Stuffed with Pesto Chicken
We're up to our eyeballs in squash so I'm always looking for new ways to use it in meals. Here's an easy recipe for pesto chicken stuffed in baked squash that everyone seems to love.
FOOD & RECIPES
Blackberry Jam Class of 2020
This year's "jam session" yielded about 3 gallons of blackberry and raspberry jam. We picked a little more than 20 lbs of fruit and used this foolproof recipe
Scallop Squash Stuffed with Pesto Chicken
We're up to our eyeballs in squash so I'm always looking for new ways to use it in meals. Here's an easy recipe for pesto chicken stuffed in baked squash that everyone seems to love.
Real Smoked Beef Jerky Recipe
Homemade beef jerky hits a new high point when you add real smoke. Here's how you can smoke jerky even if you don't have a fancy smoker.
When the World Gives You Discount Corned Beef, Make Pastrami
Pastrami is actually smoked corned beef. After St Patrick's Day, you can often pick up on sale for as little as $2 a pound. Here's how to turn it into Pastrami.
