IDENTIFICATION OF THE BACTERIUM TOMATO STEM CANKER

Diseased tomato samples were collected from green house was evaluated for isolation, pathogenicity and biochemical tests. The symptoms of the infected tomato plants were as sudden wilting after curled on leaves and necrotic streak regions developed at the crown and base of the stem and the cavities deepen and expand up and down, brown discoloration and necrosis occurring on xylem and phloem vasculer. All of ages of tomato plant were susceptible to bacteria when the weather condition favorable and immediately, seen collapse symptom on tomato plant at once fail and die. The bacterium was isolated from diseased plant in all regions on nutrient Agar; a yellow bacterium was isolated from infected tomato plant in green houses and fields in Abu-Ghraib, Rashiedia and Qanat Al-Geiaysh nurseries in Baghdad provinces of Iraq. The bacterium was found gram positive, rod-shaped, non-motile and capable an aerobic growth and based on the morphological and biochemical characteristics revealed that this bacterium belongs to: Clavibacter michiganensis subsp. michiganensis. (smith) pathogenicity and hypersensitivity of the bacterium Cmm showed the disease index were 18.33, 6.66, 16.66, 5, 0% for tomato seedlings were inoculated treatments as the wounding roots, without wounding roots, crown of the stem, petiole and control respectively.