I got into beekeeping last year (after putting it off for 20 years) and part of my final impetus was that nearing 50 means my physical capability will eventually restrict the amount of hobbies I can meaningfully engage in since I'm not getting any younger. (unsurprisingly 🤦♂️)
As a result, I've started thinking more intentionally about developing hobbies that I can continue well into old age. Beekeeping has been a great addition because it gets me outdoors, gives me something to learn, and provides a tangible reward at the end. But what about making beef jerky? Is it similar to beekeeping in that it yields a tangible reward but only incidentally and not guaranteed to be pleasing/edible until you've mastered the flavor and safety techniques?
Part of me sees it as a hobby because there seems to be a lot to learn: selecting cuts of meat, experimenting with marinades and seasonings, mastering dehydration techniques, food safety, and constantly refining recipes. I can imagine spending years (possibly decades) trying different approaches and enjoying the process. I saw an old youtube account of mine recently that had a 15 year old video of me making Cuban sandwiches, which I've been honing/improving over the last 18 years and have never lost the obsession!
If beef jerky making is a hobby then I plan to pursue it. If it's more akin to a culinary skill, then I plan to go on a deep dive to the back bottom corners of my closet to find my rock wool cubes and plant 20 hydroponic tomato seeds before the end of this weekend. (I have a ton of hydroponic equipment but it's all been sitting in my closet unopened for the better part of 8-10 years)
I met another local gardener through an online board game but he was unable to offer advice on wilt disease prevention. Do you have any actionable advice on how to prevent fusarium wilt and/or verticulum wilt? I'm inexperienced with Lemmy so if you can't view this screenshot easily, I've transcribed it below:
So I'm not in Florida, but I am in the tropics. But we do have similar challenges, and I'll use Florida growers if I'm looking for something.
This video would be a good review, but I'm sure you've already done this level of research.
https://inv.nadeko.net/watch?v=vpMtjNVGfJQ
A few things I can start you with, some are going to be specific to tomatoes, some are going to be just general growing tips.
First, we want to separate out few things.
Starting plants and getting healthy starts is a skill all unto itself. Its why I don't recommend people starting with seeds if they are just getting started. There is no shame in just going to a garden center and buying a few starts, or even some established tomatoes. If you've struggled with a plant type before, this is a good starting point. Simplify the problem by making it smaller, and cutting out a very challenging step like starting and establishing the plants perfectly acceptable.
The best prevention of disease among any plants is health. A healthy plant can usually shrug off most things if its a strong and healthy plant to start with, which is another reason to buy a good quality start from a reputable grower. Not starting with healthy plants is not setting yourself up for success. It sounds like you've even keyed in on a few varieties. That's great. The video I put up top also mentioned some other good varieties that do well in high heat and humidity.
We're still really talking about health, but tomatoes are heavy, heavy feeders. And fertilization is key. Lots of nitrogen, tomatoes just eat it right up. To the point you can struggle to get fruit if you feed to heavily (at least too much N) but N is critical to getting them established and health.
Tomatoes need AIR and lots of it. Aggressive pruning of suckers and leaves to provide more airspace so that the area around the plants local leaf environment is less humid. This helps especially with fungal diseases. Also, avoid getting any soil on, or have any leaves touch the soil if soil borne diseases are an issue. The key to any commercial operation is sanitation. Commercial nurseries will scold you if you dont disinfect your tools between any interaction with plant tissue to the point that wiping them down becomes second nature. Fusarium wilt and vertiulum wilt are both soil borne diseases. Now maybe its in your soil, but if you live in an area with lots of ag, it could be soil getting blown onto where your tomatoes are planted. Here in Hawaii, its not fusarium, but a type of tropical fruit fly thats our biggest issue, and it attacks young growing fruits by laying its egg in them. Because of this we use mesh on our tomatoes and often bag the whole plant in a fine mesh. But this mesh can also prevent diseases that come from blow soil landing on their leaves.
After reading your case and responses, my suspicion, and I might be wrong, is that you are trying to do a lot, and would benefit from breaking the process down into smaller parts, and then just trying to do one part well (growing the tomatoes part). Don't worry about starting the plants or hydroponics until you get some small successes overcoming these disease and health issues. Hydroponics won't help if the actual issue is that your neighbor has some plant harboring the disease nearby, and just spores or dust is being blown in. I don't want to be patronizing because I see and acknowledge you've already put a lot of effort into seeking success here.
What I would recommend is simplifying the problem down to the most basic possible case, and when that is working, then build up from that. 4 five gallon pots, and pick 4 varieties that are known to work in your environment. Buy fresh, bagged garden soil, not yard soil for this. Get established plants from a reputable grower. Cut out all the possible places it could go wrong.
Amazing response, thank you!!! I'm watching the video now and will follow all these suggestions.