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Common wheat, a fundamental commodity on international markets, is increasingly differentiated into commercial types on domestic markets to meet the demand of processing companies. Improver wheat, biscuit wheat, ordinary and superior bread-making wheat are commercial varieties with specific technological characteristics. Wheat farming systems are constantly evolving, and as a result, related environmental issues emerge. We applied an LCA (Life Cycle Assessment) analysis, where the functional unit was 1 tonne of grain for each typology and system boundaries were from cradle to farm gate. Primary data were used in the study, and special attention was paid to fertiliser use. From an LCA perspective, our findings show that nitrogen (N) plays an essential role in plant production although producing different waterborne and airborne emissions and nitrate leaching, for the 4 commercial typologies studied. Furthermore, the impact can be differentiated based on the technological features of the commercial types. Our results led us to observe that the four wheat types show contrasting economic and environmental performances.

The exact prevalence of Sarcocystis spp. infection in animals slaughtered for food is unknown in Lithuania. Therefore, the present study was initiated to evaluate Sarcocystis spp. infection in the carcasses of cattle (n = 206), sheep (n = 61), pigs (n = 73) and horses (n = 72) raised in Lithuania for food. The prevalence and intensity of Sarcocystis spp. infection were assessed under light microscopy by analysing 1 g of stained and squashed muscle samples. All the investigated muscle types (oesophagus, diaphragm, heart, neck, jaw, back, leg and tongue) were found to have been infected with microcysts rather than with macrocysts. A high prevalence of infection was established in cattle (44.9-98.1%) and sheep (100%), whereas the prevalence of this infection in pigs (30.1-50.0%) and horses (34.7-63.9%) was considered to be moderate. Significant differences in the infection prevalence were detected in the majority of muscle groups of cattle and in some muscle groups of pigs and horses. Similarly, significant differences in the median (Md) intensity of infection were observed in the majority of the muscle groups of cattle (Md = 4-29) and sheep (Md = 21-73) and only in some muscle groups of pigs (Md = 4.5-16) and horses (Md = 1-3). Cases of intense infection (> 40 cysts in a sample) were relatively often detected in sheep (44.9%) and cattle (19.1%), and rarely in pigs (3.7%). Hence, based on the varying rates of infection in the examined samples, the infection was identified as being intense in sheep and cattle, moderate in pigs and low in horses.

Milk production is one of the most important areas of the Czech agrarian sector, as evidenced by its 50% share (at 2017 prices) in revenues from livestock production. As for any business, a certain level of profitability is a prerequisite for long-term and sustainable development of dairy farms. This study's aim was to evaluate the economic efficiency of milk production from both Czech Fleckvieh (C) and Holstein (H) cows based on data collected each year from 48 to 70 Czech dairy farms in the period from 2012 to 2017. Total costs per feeding day and litre of milk, level of profitability, and income over feed costs were calculated. The influences of herd size and milk yield on profitability and break-even points were examined while sensitivity analysis and model calculations were utilised to predict profitability. The farms with higher average milk yields (>7 500 and >9 500 L per lactation for C and H, respectively) had higher costs per feeding day, lower costs per litre of milk, and improved profitability (p < 0.05). Average break-even points were estimated for milk price (0.31 and 0.32 EUR) and milk yield (7 257 and 9 209 L) in C and H herds, respectively.

The water demand for cover crops (CC) should be considered to achieve competitive crop stands for weed control also under unfavorable conditions. This study aims to estimate the weed suppressive ability of winter CC, as Sinapis alba L., Phacelia tanacetifolia Benth., Vicia sativa L. and Avena strigosa Schreb., under a water-limited regime. The water deficit tolerance of different CC was determined in a greenhouse experiment by measuring the maximum quantum efficiency of photosystem II. Moreover, soil moisture, CC, and weed establishment were measured in field experiments in Southwest-Germany during two contrasting growing seasons in 2016 and 2017. A. strigosa showed a higher water deficit tolerance than S. alba in the greenhouse. In the field, A. strigosa showed the highest weed cover reduction (98%) in the field, along with an increasing effect on the soil moisture compared to the untreated control. S. alba performed most sensitive to water deficit in the greenhouse but reached the significantly highest weed control efficacy (94%) during the dry field season in 2016. Even though the selected CC showed differing sensitivities to water deficit in the greenhouse, their weed suppression ability was independent of the water supply under field conditions.

A public private partnership can be an effective approach to deal the projects with modern agricultural development in Sub Saharan Africa. A former financial analysis of a development project, carried out by the authors, showed that public and private partners can effectively join in a mutually satisfactory venture capital. The same project is now complemented with a bankability study, considering lenders options, equity allocation, collaterals and likely applicable interest rates, available cash flow and sustainable debt service repayment to provide a through financing scenario for each partner's perspective assessing the relevant Debt Service and Loan Life Cover Ratios. Cash flow and interest rates fluctuation impacts are eventually investigated with a sensitivity analysis to prove the robustness of the proposed scenario.

The objective of the study was to determine effects of ribavirin on development and health status of in vitro grown strawberry cultivars 'Honeoye' and 'Elkat' infected with viruses Strawberry mild yellow-edge virus (SMYEV), Tomato ringspot virus (ToRSV) and Arabis mosaic virus (ArMV). Antiviral compound ribavirin was added in concentrations 20, 40, 80 and 160 mg/l to the same MS medium as for multiplication. Growth reduction was noted on medium with 160 mg/l ribavirin and to a lesser degree in the 40 and 80 mg/l treatments. At the end of chemotherapy, in vitro clones free of viruses detected previously in the initial plants were obtained for both selected cultivars across all ribavirin concentrations. The highest number of plants (94) with negative results of ELISA testing was noted on medium with the highest ribavirin concentration 160 mg/l and the lowest (73) on medium with the lowest concentration 20 mg/l of ribavirin. The treated plants look symptomless and appear morphologically equal to the untreated control plants. Results indicate that ribavirin treatment of in vitro plants is a suitable method for eliminating SMYEV, ToRSV and ArMV from strawberry.

To analyse the genetic diversity of the Cucumber green mottle mosaic virus (CGMMV) population in Poland and to establish the phylogenetic relationships between the Polish and other isolates described to date, 91 isolates were collected from cucumber plants. The analysis, based on coat protein (CP) gene, revealed the presence of two phylogenetic groups: one consisting of the Polish isolates collected in 2017 and those originated mainly from Asia region and the second including the Polish isolates collected in 2016 and the others from European countries. The sensitive, specific, and rapid one-step loop-mediated isothermal amplification assay was developed for the early detection of genetically diverse CGMMV isolates in seeds and plant material.

The agricultural traceability system provides information transparency throughout the agricultural supply chain. This paper applies game theory to analyse the traceability system used by the herbal product industry in order to elucidate the strategic choices made by government authorities, farmers (e.g. producers), certification agencies, and consumers. This paper clarifies how relevant variables affect the traceability system employed in the herbal product industry. The analysis yields strong results and indicates a superior equilibrium; the observed strategic choices comprise active traceability system promotion by authorities, development of a comprehensive traceability system by farmers, maintenance of independence by certification agencies, and purchase of herbal products by consumers. The traceability system and existing herbal product safety programs must be refined because they are crucial to consumers, farmers, and people who support agricultural communities. These results contribute to the literature in the field, serving as a reference for members of the herbal product industry, government authorities, and academics.

A 6-month-old crossbred of a Holstein and Japanese Black heifer calf weighing 95 kg presented with a history of intermittent abdominal distension and failure to thrive. The physical examination identified a pinging sound over the dorsal left flank. The abdominal radiography showed a huge gas-filled mass. The intravenous urography revealed no communication between the mass and the urinary bladder. Although the visual examination and palpation of the umbilicus did not reveal visible abnormalities, an umbilical disease was suspected because the animal exhibited poor growth, depression, and a hunched back posture. When the eschar adhering to the centre of the umbilicus was removed, the presence of a fistulous tract was revealed. The umbilical ultrasound examination revealed an intra-abdominal abscess and the fistulography demonstrated that the abscess communicated with the umbilicus. The abscess, compressing into the rumen, was observed by computed tomography. From these images, it was diagnosed as an umbilical cord remnant abscess and a definitive diagnosis of a urachal abscess was obtained by open abdominal surgery and the subsequent removal of the mass. The calf was discharged from the university hospital on day 14 after the operation. This case shows that a urachal abscess should be considered when a pinging sound is present, even if the animal exhibits no swelling or pain of the umbilicus.

The study presents results of the one-factor field experiment carried out in years 2005-2011 located on a slope with an inclination of 9%, in the mountain region (southern Poland, 545 m a.s.l.). Soil-protection effectiveness of potato, spring barley and meadow was studied on the basis of vegetation cover forming during whole plant vegetation period, expressed as LAI (leaf area index). The mass of surface runoff from the plots was measured after precipitation and snowmelts causing surface wash-out. The plots were arranged in a randomized block design, in four repetitions. Surface wash-outs were caught in the Słupik's catchers. The soil-protection effectiveness of potato starts when plants cover 80% of the soil surface, in spring barley it was 60%, and for meadow 10%. Reduction of the intensity of surface wash as a result of an increase in the surface of the plants aerial-parts is described in the following simple regression equations: y = -1480.7x + 4094.2 (r = 0.63, n = 216) for potato; y = -59.2x + 157.4 (r = 0.69, n = 200) for spring barley, and y = -1.5097x + 11.6 (r = 0.37, n = 236) for meadow. Meadow protects soil against water erosion 6.8-times more effectively than spring barley and 324-times better than potato. The results enabled verification of the nomograms determining the carbon indicator value in the USLE equation for tested plants under similar conditions.

The article is dealing with an issue of subsidies granted to agricultural enterprises arising from the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). The aim of the paper is to quantify the effects of the individual subsidies that were used by agricultural enterprises according to their profits, losses and revenues. The size structure of agricultural enterprises in the Czech Republic is taken into account for more detailed measures of the subsidy impact. The article uses key data such as financial statements of agricultural enterprises and subsidies that were received by companies over the years 2007-2011. The analysis was performed by using the fixed effect model. An evaluation of current economic situation of these enterprises including the structure of drawn subsidies was carried out before the analysis. Different impacts of subsidies on the company´s management have been proved. The subsidies influence the medium and large enterprises significantly and positively. A negative impact of subsidies was observed on profits and revenues of small businesses. Detailed results are described in the article.

The aim of this study was to determine the distribution of Staphylococci from swab samples of dogs with otitis externa and to determine their antibiotic resistance profiles, particularly methicillin resistance. For this purpose 116 ear swab samples were collected from 100 dogs and examined for the presence of Staphylococcus species by conventional culture methods. Antibiotic susceptibility of the isolates was determined by the disk diffusion test and for methicillin resistance, by PCR. Forty Staphylococci were isolated from 37 (31.9%) of the 116 ear swabs. Among the 40 isolates, 30 of them were coagulase-positive Staphylococcus species (CPS), while 10 (25%) were coagulase-negative Staphylococcus spp. (CNS). S. pseudintermedius (n = 11), S. aureus (n = 8), other not determined Staphylococcus spp. (n = 7), S. chromogenes (n = 7), S. schleiferi coagulans (n = 3), S. hyicus (n = 1), S. hominis subsp. hominis (n = 1), S. simulans (n = 1), S. saprophyticus (n = 1) were isolated. Results of the antibiotic susceptibility tests have shown that 60% of the isolates were resistant to sulfamethoxazole/trimethoprim, 32.5% of them were resistant to erythromycin, 25% were resistant to clindamycin, and all isolates (100%) were sensitive to amoxicillin/clavulanic acid and cephazolin. The majority of isolates (97.5%) were sensitive to ciprofloxacin and gentamicin which are frequently used in otitis externa treatment. It was determined that only one (2.5%) (S. hominis subsp. hominis) of the 40 isolates was resistant to methicillin and carried the mecA gene. We found 77% of Staphylococcus spp. to be resistant to one or more antimicrobial drugs, and 25% of Staphylococcus species were found to be resistant to three or more antimicrobial classes. Thus, multidrug-resistance as detected in our study should always be taken into account and close attention should be given to the antimicrobial therapy protocols of pet animals.

Knowledge about the spatio-temporal variability of soil chemical and biological properties is crucial in evaluating their structure-function relationship and their impact on ecosystem functions. A study was conducted in order to evaluate the spatial variability of nitrogen (N) forms and N-cycle enzymes of a Phaeozem located in the Northwestern Poland. Fifty soil samples were collected every 10 m from the area of 90 × 40 m that was selected from an 80 ha agricultural field after the harvest of winter wheat. The samples were analysed for total nitrogen (N_tot); mineral nitrogen (NO₃^--N, NH₄⁺-N) and the activities of the N cycle enzymes - urease (UR), nitrate reductase (NR) and arginine deaminase (ADA). The coefficients of variation were low for N_tot content and UR activity, while a moderate variability was noted for mineral N and ADA activity and a high one was noted for NR activity. Most of the properties revealed a contribution of random variance (nugget effect) in total variability (sill), while only N_tot and ADA activity were determined by the structural variance. The effective ranges were from 11.9 m for NO₃^--N to more than 50.3 m for NH₄⁺-N. Kriged maps showed that every property revealed a different distribution on the study area. The significant variability of the studied properties should be taken into account in soil management practices. Additionally, this knowledge would contribute to a better understanding of the nitrogen transformation in soil and functioning of the ecosystem.

Eutrophication of inland waters by phosphorus as well as loads of coastal and marine waters by nitrogen is a major problem that impedes water bodies to meet the status defined by the Water Framework Directive. In order to reduce the nutrient load on the aquatic environment, first the significance of various pollution types should be thoroughly analyzed. The analysis of phosphorus runoff from agricultural land under normal rainfall-runoff conditions, and of nitrogen runoff associated with the application of manure on farmland shows their different impact on water body status in the Vltava river basin. The assessment of phosphorus indicates that annual specific phosphorus runoff ranges from 0.1 to 9.98 kg/km2 and in the sub-basins of the Upper Vltava, Berounka, and Lower Vltava, the average values from all water bodies reach 4.08, 2.92, and 4.02 kg/km2, respectively. Compared with the allowable capacity of water bodies for achieving a proper status, the average rate of phosphorus input on the load of water bodies comes within 20%, with a maximum value slightly exceeding 50%. This phosphorus input will not be a significant source of eutrophication of inland waters and measures will have to focus rather on other eutrophication sources. Estimating the significance of the impact of manure application on the nitrogen load of water bodies provides a completely opposite picture. The analyses showed that the load of water bodies ranges from very low values in areas without livestock to high loads in tens of kg/ha per year (max. 31.5 kg/ha/year). In the sub-basins of the Upper Vltava, Berounka, and Lower Vltava the annual specific runoff of nitrogen reaches average values for all water bodies (4.8, 3.9, and 5.7 kg/ha, respectively). The assessment of the proportion of nitrogen input on the load of water bodies showed that 25% of cases in the area of the water body may represent a critical load leading to an adverse assessment of ecological status. In many other water bodies it can, however, taking into account the load of mineral fertilizers, lead to exceeding the allowable capacity of water bodies and the risk of not achieving a right status. Nitrogen input after application of manure in soils represents an important source that threatens the right status of waters. Attention should thus be paid to all types of measures that will reduce the load of this source or restrict its transport from soil to waters.

The visual impact of primary landscape is overwritten, historical references and spiritual ties to the current local population are losing. Rational planning and evaluation of the landscape must correspond to this situation. In the Czech Republic methodologies of landscape assessment (for its identification, typology) exist, but there is no finalizing material to specify procedures for creating landscape designs in accordance with a particular landscape type or vegetation zone. As a response, the new methodology of compositional preconditions assessment in the beech vegetation zone and the model etalon applying generally valid compositional principles on landscape designs were created. In a verification study the new methodology was applied in a specific micro region association - the Svidník. For the worst evaluated units proposals according to the model etalon has been prepared to highlight the characteristics of the appropriate vegetation zone.

The paper is focused on the problems of water level motion in water reservoirs. Dimensions of wind driven waves are closely related to the parameters of occurring wind. Due to the complexity of the physical phenomena, most methods for wave prediction are based on semi-empirical relations. The theories for approximation of waves follow two approaches. The first one, called regular waves, is based on mathematical description of water surface. The second one, called irregular waves, results from statistical processing of collected data. The methods have been modified as wind and wave data were accumulated over time, resulting in better predictions. The aim of the present research consists in verification of two selected irregular wave models for characteristic wave height estimation - the first one widely used by U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for sea and large inland water bodies conditions and the second one related to the Czech standard specification CSN 75 0255 Calculation of wave effects on hydraulic structures. Characteristic wave height represents one of the most important wave parameters as an input for consequent computational tasks dealing with hydrodynamic events occurring on the point of interaction between water level and shore (wave breaking, wave setup, wave run-up on structures and banks, etc.). Further, the paper discusses relevant statistical techniques for proper exploration of special data of wave motion gained from in situ measurements.

The aim of this paper was to determine the influence of factors related to rainfall data on the uncertainty flood simulation. The calculations were based on a synthetic unit hydrograph NRCS-UH. Simulation uncertainty was determined by means of GLUE method. The calculations showed that in the case of a catchment with limited meteorological data, it is better to use rainfall data from a single station located within the catchment, than to take into account the data from higher number of stations, but located outside the catchment area. The parameters of the NRCS-UH model (curve number and initial abstraction) were found to be less variable when the input contained rainfall data from a single rainfall station. It was also manifested by a lower uncertainty of the simulation results for the variant with one rainfall station, as compared to the variant based on the use of averaged rainfall in the catchment.

Angiostrongylus vasorum and Crenosoma vulpis are parasites in the respiratory tract of domestic and wild carnivores. Recently, an increasing number of lungworm infections in dogs has been recognized in Europe. In this report, the results of the first copro-epidemiological study of A. vasorum and C. vulpis in dogs from Slovakia are presented. The Baermann technique and the modified flotation method with zinc sulphate solution (specific gravity 1.2) was used for lungworm detection. In addition, conventional PCR was performed for species confirmation. The majority of lungworm infections were found in the eastern part of the country. A relatively high prevalence (4.13%) of A. vasorum was detected in different parts of Slovakia. Infection was detected most frequently incidentally in asymptomatic dogs. Within this study, crenosomosis was detected for the first time in dogs from Slovakia. Since one infected dog had no travel history, the case is considered autochthonous. An autochthonous case report of angiostrongylosis in a Hanoverian hound puppy from central Slovakia is also described.

The specificity of the agricultural sector (seasonality, the methods of obtaining human resources and so on) affects the situation in the labour market. The demand of agriculture companies for qualified workers is relatively high; unfortunately, people still prefer to work in the related or other fields where they have more suitable work conditions related. Building the brand of the employer, improving the awareness of the public and increasing the loyalty of the present employees can raise the offer of vacancies and obtain new qualified employees. The aim of the paper is to identify the benefits of human resource branding in businesses arising therefrom. A partial aim is to identify the present key managerial challenges of agriculture businesses. In the work, the data collected from a questionnaire survey (n = 108) were used together with the information from the Czech Statistical Office, in the opinion of which the labour market in the agricultural sector does not exhibit a positive trend. As a part of the evaluation, a factor analysis was carried out identifying three categories of benefits (the stabilisation of workers, organisational processes, and other benefits) crucial for the employer branding in agriculture.

For at least 25 years, processes involving structural changes have been growing more and more intense in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, with these processes including a decline in the number of small farms. The main aim of this paper is to present the mechanisms involved in, as well as barriers to and costs preventing the exit of farms from agriculture, including those that make it difficult to transfer production resources which are being released to other companies. This research takes the form of an overview and is based on the output of new institutional economics, and on transaction cost and rent-seeking theories in particular. The most frequent difficulties encountered in the process of exit from farming include low profitability of production and the shortage of capital among potential buyers, while the lack of sellers' financial resources and the necessity of incurring expenses related to preparing and finalising the sale of resources held by them (the actual transaction costs related to closing down farms) are frequently overlooked. The most important barriers preventing the complete liquidation of farms are the inherent transaction costs categorised as expenses, as well as the emotional costs and costs of alternatives, which are difficult to evaluate and estimate. The following notions are particularly helpful in explaining barriers to exit from farming: the concept of transaction costs and rent-seeking theory, which are both a part of the stream of thought of new institutional economics.

The most common way of renovation of the working parts of agricultural machinery is surfacing by hardfacing coated electrodes and piped hardfacing wires. Another way to prolong the working life of the machinery is the chemical heat treatment of the material surface by nitriding. By nitriding, high hardness is obtained of the surface affected by a suitable environment and by raised temperature. This paper deals with the possibilities of increasing the lifetime of the functional area of a ploughshare by the surfacing piped wire and hardfacing electrodes and reshaping the surface layer in an argon and nitrogen environment by using a welding rectifier and the Tungsten Inert GAS method, and by validation of these methods of renovation in operating conditions.

Cortisol, which is produced in the adrenal glands, is an endogenous glucocorticoid hormone that delivers its hormonal message to cells by acting on glucocorticoid receptors. It is one of the main stress hormones responsible for stress responses in animals and humans, and its overproduction is characteristic of certain diseases. While acute stress disorder can be evaluated by means of measuring the cortisol concentration in blood and urine, chronic stress disorder can be detected by monitoring the cortisol concentration in fur or hair. Hair collection is simple, inexpensive and non-invasive, and can be performed easily and rapidly; thus, it appears to be a suitable method for determining the level of stress in dogs from shelters, abused dogs or dogs involved in different types of animal interactions. Since it is a relatively new method, monitoring cortisol in hair or fur requires further research in order to definitively prove its efficacy, and possibly to determine reference range values for different breeds of dogs.

The paper presents the results of a conceptual study of lightweight wooden construction hall building with polygonal ground plan, suitable for agriculture. It comprises evaluation of chosen technical and functional characteristics and possibilities for animal production. The results of the study confirm advantages (mainly lower material and costs demandingness, environmentally friendliness, light-weight construction, fast assembly operations) and disadvantages (mainly larger range of groundwork, higher demandingness on roof structure, foundation of slab constructions and anchoring of vertical bearing constructions). Values of radial tensile stress at an interval of 9.0 to 21.0 MPa and tangential tensile stress at an interval of 1.4 to 16.0 MPa were calculated on vertical load 100 kN at the top of the construction). The construction makes possible to achieve a span as far as 60 m with effective canvas strain at large radius curvature from 80 m to 100 m.

The fall of the communist system in Central Europe was followed by dynamic social and economic change that also had its clear impact on the food sector. One of the key factors shaping the contemporary condition of the agricultural sector in region has been change of ownership, with the collapse of the nationalised sector and restitution of property to former owners. The work presented here considers the main directions of changes and assessment of selected economic processes ongoing in the farming sector over the last quarter-century throughout the region under consideration. This analysis may be further broken down in relation to the three suggested phases of change, i.e. transformation, integration and polarisation. The work took in five countries of the former Eastern Bloc, i.e. the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the radiation exposure level of surgeons performing C-arm guided small animal orthopaedic surgery using thermoluminescent dosimeters located inside and outside personnel shielding devices at major body parts. A prospective study was conducted to measure the radiation exposure dose of individuals in three positions (first assistant, operating surgeon and anaesthesiologist) using thermoluminescent dosimeters placed inside and outside protective devices. The lead equivalent protective devices included panorama mask, thyroid shield, apron and arm shield placed at five anatomic sites (eye, thyroid, breast, gonad and hand). Radiation exposure was measured during 12 surgical procedures with mean kVp of 51 and mean mAs of 1.6. The equivalent doses for thyroid, breast and gonad (outside/inside in mSv) were 1.75/0.58, 2.01/0.13 and 3.03/0.11, respectively, for the first assistant and 1.69/1.46, 4.82/0.35 and 5.25/0.22 for the operating surgeon. The dose of eye, thyroid, breast, gonad and arm for the anaesthesiologist were 0.61/0.51, 0.35/0.3, 0.67/0.34, 0.72/0.29 and 0.62/0.35, respectively. The exposure dose to gonads outside the lead protection showed the highest values in all participants. With lead protection, there was a significant reduction in the exposure dose to the gonads (first assistant, 96%; operating surgeon, 96%; anaesthesiologist, 60%). These results suggest that a radiation shield is essential in veterinary surgery with C-arms, particularly for gonad protection. In addition, these results demonstrate that exposure dose decreases with increasing distance from the C-arm machine.

Mexican agricultural production has been characterised by a lack of dynamism in recent years and is losing ground in terms of GDP. This may reflect the lack of funding from commercial and development banks. This research aims at studying the dynamics of the agriculture sector through econometric analysis using Vector Autoregressive (VAR) and Vector Error Correction (VEC) models in order to examine the short- and long-run relationships among agricultural production, terms of trade (ratio of agricultural prices and general price level), agricultural exports and lending from commercial and development banks. The main empirical findings, contrary to what was expected, is that even though there was a precarious level of funding from the banking sector, credit from commercial banking was higher than that from development banking in the last decades. Further, relative prices were found to have a negative relationship with agricultural exports, showing the importance of the external sector in agriculture.

The trap catch of Agriotes species and dynamics of the occurrence of adult click beetles using pheromone traps were determined, and the relationship between the dynamics of the caught wireworms and the placement of traps in selected agricultural crops was investigated. The study was conducted in 2011-2014 in the fields of different crops at five localities in two regions in Poland. The effectiveness of trapping the Elateridae beetles using pheromone traps varied in different localities. The results of the analysis of variance indicate statistically significant differences in the number of A. lineatus beetles only in individual years of research. On average, most individuals of this species were observed in the first year of observation (72.62), and the least - in 2012 (18.5). Statistically significant differences in the occurrence of beetles in each month were observed for all species except A. obscurus. No statistically significant differences between populations of the tested Agriotes species were observed in different localities. Their effectiveness was influenced largely by weather conditions. Pheromone traps work well and can be a part of an assessment system for the integrated pest management of Agriotes species.

Several sets of soil samples were chosen to demonstrate the applicability of the Mehlich 3 extractant for the determination of sulphur (S) in soils. Archived samples from 139 basal soil monitoring plots (BSMS) sampled in 1995 and 2013, samples from eleven long-term field trials sampled in 1981 and 2017, 1167 soil samples from the areas vulnerable to S losses and 720 samples from the non-vulnerable areas sampled in 2010 were chosen for the experiments. Mehlich 3 clearly showed a statistically highly significant decrease in the soil S content caused by reduction of SO₂ emissions in the long-term field experiments from 33 mg/kg in 1981 to 8 mg/kg in 2017 for the median of the untreated controls. Similar results were obtained for BSMS samples, where an average decrease from 26 mg/kg in 1995 to 17 mg/kg in 2013 was found. Mehlich 3 also showed that more than 52% of samples from the areas vulnerable to S losses were in a very low content category in contrast to only 3% of soils from the other areas. Mehlich 3 clearly proved the capacity to distinguish changes in the content of soil S in all studied cases.

DNA extraction is a crucial step in PCR analysis especially when analysing food samples that can be degraded and can potentially contain PCR-inhibiting substances. In this study, we compared the suitability of three DNA extraction methods - two kits: DNeasy^® Plant Mini Kit and NucleoSpin^® Food, and the CTAB method - for DNA extraction from commercial fruit jams. Fourteen jams with different contents of fruit, sugar and other additives were extracted in triplicate using the above-mentioned methods directly and after a washing step. The concentration and optical density were analysed using UV spectrophotometry and the amplifiability of the obtained DNA was evaluated using a PCR assay targeting a sequence coding for chloroplast tRNA-Leu. Samples isolated using the NucleoSpin^® Food kit contained non-amplifiable DNA in eight cases, and samples isolated using the CTAB method could not be quantified. The DNeasy^® Plant Mini Kit thus proved to be the most suitable method, since well-amplifiable DNA was obtained for all the analysed samples.

The paper is devoted to an analysis of the development of agrarian farms in Visegrad Group (V4) countries, primarily in terms of results and the most important production inputs of production factors and their efficiency in the period from 2004 to 2013 based on the EU Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN). The results of the analysis show that if farms in the V4 countries want to achieve the same performance as developed countries, they must invest more in purchasing intensification factors and adjust the structure of assets production specification. It will be necessary to stop the reduction in the numbers of livestock and to strive for growth in gross farm income, mainly through the processing of agricultural raw materials.