SEED QUALITY OF SELECTED VEGETABLE SPECIES ON THE POLISH MARKET

In the years 2001-2003 the seed quality of 108 samples of white head cabbage, garden carrot, red beet, onion, cucumber, tomato, radish, lettuce, common bean and garden pea were checked. They came from 3 Polish seed companies and 1 foreign one operating on the Polish market. It was found out that 22.2% of the examined seed samples did not meet the standards concerning germination capacity. The worst were seeds of lettuce and head cabbage. Their samples did not meet the germination capacity standards in 55.5% and 41.7%, respectively. The best quality was found for seeds of red beet and cucumbers - all their tested samples met the germination capacity standards. The highest number of samples, which did not meet the standards, came from the company number 2, the smallest - from the company number 4. All tested seed samples met the purity standards

Strategies of development of horticultural breeding and seed production companies after Poland joins the European Union

The paper presents the main factors affecting strategies of development of horticultural breeding and seed production companies in Poland. These are: specific character of their activity, weather, economic situation, law and regulation status and the state agricultural policy. There are five main strategies discussed: specialization in a market channel, enlarging the activity for all horticulture, taking over the whole production - marketing chain, fusion with another company and grouping firm into a co-operative, cooperation or holding.</p

INDEXES OF TOLERANCE OF TOMATO (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) SEEDS FOR GERMINATION AT LOW TEMPERATURES

Sixteen tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) cultivars from Poland and China were tested on their seed tolerance to germinate at low temperatures: 15 degree and 10 degree. Their responses were evaluated based on 4 characters: germination energy, germination capacity, maximum germination and fresh weight of 100 normal seedlings, calculated then into 6 different indexes. All of proposed indexes include the optimal temperature of germination (20 degree). There is a possibility to use the suggested indexes to evaluate seed tolerance of various tomato cultivars to germinate at low temperatures. The tested low temperatures decreased the germination energy of the seeds of the tested tomato cultivars. Three cultivars were found with a satisfactory germination at 15 degree, but at 10 degree the germination of all tested cultivars was poor. The biggest tolerances of seeds to germinate at 15 degree was found for the cultivars: 'Kibic', 'Maliniak' and 'Etna F1', the smallest - for the cultivars: 'Bai Guo Qiang Feng' and 'Sheng Li 919'. The biggest tolerances of seeds to germinate at 10 degree was found for the cultivars: 'Batory F1' and 'Korsarz', whereas the smallest - for the cultivars: 'Etna F1', 'Poranek', 'Maliniak', 'Kora', 'Bursztyn', 'Sheng Li 919', 'Ju Huang 83-3' and 'Bai Guo Qiang Feng'