Bacterial fruit blotch

Bacterial fruit blotch (BFB) affects cucurbit plants worldwide and can seriously threaten growers because it spreads through contaminated seed. It is caused by infection with the gram-negative bacterium Acidovorax citrulli, which has only recently been studied in detail; the rod-shaped bacterium measures about 0.5 by 1.7 micrometers and moves by means of polar flagella. No reliable source of resistance to BFB is currently known, so seed hygiene and thorough testing of breeding facilities are the best available means of control, though no control method today is highly reliable at reducing infection. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/