EN
The aim of the presented studies was to determine a casual agent of zucchini soft rot under the field conditions in the region of Kujawy. In 2009 and 2010, after heavy rain and high temperatures, a mass occurrence of soft rot on the zucchini stems was recorded, leading to a significant reduction in the yield. From zucchini diseased tissue with the soft rot symptoms, some cultures of bacteria were isolated. The isolates giving a positive reaction in pathogenicity test were marked as C1, C2 and C3. Phenotypic characterization of the C1 and C3 isolates allowed to classify them into Erwinia genus and the isolate C2 into Corynebacterium. The further identification using BIOLOG system and sequencing 16S rDNA partial genes, allowed finally to identicate the isolates C1 and C3 as Pectobacterium carotovorum ssp. carotovorum and isolate C2 as Corynebacterium. Studied isolates caused strong soft rot on cucumber and zucchini slices in less than 24 hours after inoculation. The same isolates were reisolated from rotting tissue what confirmed their identity with those ones used for inoculation.