Isolation of endophytic bacteria
Endophytic bacterial strains were isolated from various organs of healthy tomato plants. Leaves, roots, stems and fruits were sterilized for 5 min with 1 % sodium hypochlorite solution and 70 % ethanol for 1 min and washed 3 times with sterile distilled water. Each sample was aseptically cut into small pieces and deposited on Petri dishes containing Luria–Bertani medium (LB). After plates’ incubation for 2 days at 30 C, representative colonies were streaked onto new LB plates. Bacteria were stored at -20 C in LB broth containing 25 % glycerol.