INTRODUCTION

“Breeding strategy” is defined as the determination of breeding objectives and the means necessary to reach these objectives. In Poland the potato is a field crop of major economic importance (Swiezynski 1982). To improve it an efficient breeding strategy is required. After a short description of present-day potato breeding in Poland, some possible ways of increasing its efficiency will be considered.

THE OBJECTIVES AND STRUCTURE OF POTATO BREEDING IN POLAND

Potatoes are grown in Poland under various conditions and the crop is utilized in various ways. It follows that there must be a number of breeding objectives. Recently Polish breeders agreed that it is desirable to improve the following characters: table quality, dry matter content, resistance to viruses, resistance to blight (Phytophthora infestans), resistance to cyst nematode (Globodera spp.), resistance to storage diseases and adaptation to light, water-deficient soils. The breeding work and associated activities may be grouped as follows:

Potato collection Cultivars and breeding lines as well as wild and primitive cultivated species are being maintained and evaluated. It is important to make available to breeders new cultivars developed in countries with extensive potato breeding programmes.

Parental line breeding Parental lines with multiple resistance to pathogens and outstanding in some agronomic characters are being supplied to breeders (Swiezynski 1983, 1984a). Every year each breeder receives a list of potential lines and every 5 years the results of parental-line breeding are summarized (Roguski 1971, Kapsa 1977, Swiezynski 1984a).