Kritzman, G., Dept. of Plant Pathology, ARO, Volcani Center, Bet Dagan, 50250, Israel
A 6-year study led to the development of a tomato seed treatment that controlled Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato (PT), Pseudomonas corrugata (PC), Xanthomonas campestris pv. vesicatoria (XV), and Clavibacter michiganense subsp. michiganense (CM). Tomato seeds were immersed, at a ratio of 1:4 (w/v) seeds: chemical, in a solution containing cupric acetate, acetic acid, pentachloronitrobenzene, 5-ethoxy-3(trichloromethyl)-l,2,4-thiadiazole, and Triton x-100, for 1 h at 45±0.1 °C. The treatment was carried out in a thermostat-controlled bath circulator. The pathogens PT, XV and CM were almost eradicated after immersion of seeds for 30 min at 25 °C, whereas PC was controlled only after 1 h of treatment at 45 °C. The effectiveness of the treatment was related to the formation of a Cu2+ organic complex in the solution. The treatment did not affect seed germination or seedling vigor. Most of the tomato seeds produced or imported by Israel are now successfully treated by this method. © 1993, Springer Science + Business Media B.V.. All rights reserved.