Seed bacterization, sowing and seedlings were grown as described above Thirty-day-old-seedlings were clip inoculated with sterile scissors dipped in cultures 108 cfu ml−1 of Xoo following the procedures described by Kauffman et al. (1973). The inoculated plants were covered for 24 h with a polythene bag, with care taken that the plants are not in direct contact with the bag. Seeds treated with distilled water + 0.2% CMC, seeds treated with talc + 0.2% CMC and seeds treated with sodium alginate + 0.2% CMC served as control for fresh suspension, talc and sodium alginate formulations, respectively. Seeds treated with Bactomin (antibiotic; 2-bromo-nitropropane 1-3 diol) 2 g/kg of seeds served as a positive control. In each pot, 15 plants were inoculated, and the disease incidence (%) was recorded by counting the number of infected plants 30 days after inoculation. The experiment was repeated three times.