Yeast Solution Spray and Ozone Gas Fumigation as Methods of Protecting Tomato Plants Against Diseases

The aim of the study was to determine the effect of ozone fumigation and spraying with microorganisms, i.e. yeast, on selected physiological parameters, and the extent of disease infection of tomato plants. Tomato plants were grown in the ground under covers. Throughout the 2021 and 2022 growing season, the plants were exposed to variable factors, i.e. fumigation with gaseous ozone at a dose of 2 ppm for 1 minute and spraying with yeast. After ozonation and spraying with yeast, physiological measurements were made on tomato plants, such as: selected parameters of chlorophyll fluorescence (maximum quantum yield of PSII photochemistry, maximum quantum yield of primary photochemistry) and gas exchange parameters (transpiration rate, stomatal conductivity and intercellular CO₂ concentration). In addition, the content of chlorophyll using the SPAD method as well as plant infection by diseases was determined. Compared to the control sample, ozonation resulted in a slight decrease in the physiological parameters of tomato plants. In addition, no visible leaf damage was observed after the ozone gas fumigation process. However, the use of microorganisms did not significantly change the examined physiological parameters. Both after the application of gaseous ozone and microorganisms, a significant impact of the tested variable factors was found on reducing the infection of tomato plants by diseases such as: tomato late blight, tomato alter-nariosis, gray mold, bacterial canker of tomato and bacterial spot of tomato.