Biography:

Dr. Marijan Jost, professor of Plant Breeding and Seed Production

BIOGRAPHY:

Born:	May 9, 1940 in Ptuj, R. Slovenija
Appearance:	Height: 181 cm - weight: 83kg
Education:	Agronomy: Genetics & plant breeding
Professional positions:	Wheat breeder & university professor
Membership:	Matrix Croatica Croatian Genetic Society Croatian Society of Agronomy American Society of Agronomy Crop Science Society of America
Hobby:	Jogging, Art photography & Fine Art
Awards:	Sport, Art & Science
Proud on successors:	Mario and Kruno

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EDUCATION:

1960	High School	Agricultural High School in Krizevci, R. Croatia
1966	B.Sc. degree	Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Zagreb University, R. Croatia
1971	M.Sc. degree	Genetics & Plant Breeding at Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, Zagreb University
1973	D.Sc. degree	Genetics & Plant Breeding at Faculty of Agricultural sciences, Zagreb University
1976-1977	Post doctoral study	of Hybrid Wheat Breeding at Pioneer HI-Bred International Inc., Department for Cereal Seed Breeding, Hutchinson, KS, USA.

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The History of

AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION AT KRIZEVCI

1860 the Higher Royal Farming and Forestry School was established at Krizevci. It was the first farming school in South-east Europe. Its basic goal was to improve agricultural production of that region. There are several important dates during its long history:
1883 a book of professor A. G. Vichodil under the title: ("Farming Management, or Knowledge about Skilled Farming") was published. This event is considered to be the founding year for the development of economic sciences in Croatia.
1884 the Meteorological Station was established. Professor Dr. A. Russi, suggested that "Meteorological observations should be expanded on the observations of soil heat, and data should be put at the disposal of the teachers and students every month".
1885 the Plant Breeding Station and Nursery was opened, with the most successful period under the leadership of Professor Dr. Gustav Bohutinsky - Croatian pioneer in genetics, as well as in wheat and corn breeding:
1893 the Station for Seed Testing was founded, raising seed quality and seed trade significantly.
1897 the Forestry Department moved to Zagreb where the Academy of Forestry was established.
1901 the Bacteriological Department was founded - today still active as independent Veterinary Department.
1919 the Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry in Zagreb was founded , originating from Higher Farming School Krizevci. After that year the Higher Farming School was closed and the Secondary Farming School continued successful work. World well known geneticist Milislav Demerec, later director of Carnegy's Institute at Cold Spring Harbor, USA and president of American Genetic Society (1939) originate from that school.
1909 a professional magazine "GOSPODARSKA SMOTRA" (Farming Review) was born and in 1919 transferred to Zagreb where is still published under the name: "Agriculturae Conspectus Scientificus".
1960 the Higher School of Agriculture was established again, and today is active under the name Agricultural Institute Krizevci.
Since 1993, against all logical and professional reasons, the Secondary Farming School and Agricultural Institute Krizevci exist as separate educational institutions.

Part: "NEW HISTORY" - under construction - Sorry!
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Dr. Gustav Bohutinsky 1877 - 1914 The frst Croatian Geneticist and Plant Breeder

In the period from 1903 to 1912, Gustav Bohutinsky was a head of the Plant Breeding Station and professor at the Royal Farming School at Krizevci. During that time, he was conducting an extensive research work mainly on wheat and corn. Based on the results of his own experiments Dr. Bohutinsky pleaded for a method of individual selection from domestic populations in order to obtain new improved types of self-pollinated plants. The richness of the autochthonous populations with satisfying genetic variability soon enabled him to prove the validity of his claims. By method of individual selection from autochthonous population like 'White Wheat from Srijem' and 'Somogy Wheat', or from introduced wheat populations, among which "Sirban Prolific" held an outstanding position, he studied (1907) and obtained higher yielding types of wheat. Owing to better yielding, his selections were soon spread all over Croatia, and parts of Slovenia and Bosnia. They were grown under the name of 'Bohutinsky's Wheat' until 1925. Beside wheat, by the method of individual selection he also selected domestic rye, two-rowed beer barley, multirowed forage barley and winter oat.
Signature: Dr. Gustav Bohutinsky, kr. profesor

Signature: Dr. Gustav Bohutinsky, kr. profesor

During his experimental work and after success with the method of individual selection, Dr. Bohutinsky develops his thought and arrives at the conclusion that better results can be obtained by crossing and selection in segregating descendants, than by individual selection from autochthonous populations, and he concludes that the initial advantage and efficiency of mass-selection have their limitations. His scientific thought coincides completely with the state of thought in the developed European countries at that time. For instance, in Sweden individual selection from autochthonous populations of wheat was carried out up to 1915, when they started combination plant breeding based on hybridization.
          His paper "The Crossing of Square-head x Banatska Brkulja" (1911), published in "Gospodarska smotra" - the first scientific journal issued in 1909, represents one of the earliest significant work on wheat genetics in Croatia.
         As a follower of Mendel's theories Dr. Bohutinsky did many tests aiming to prove hereditary theories. In this work he became aware of some new facts, and in 1912 in his paper "One case of spontaneous crossing of four-rowed with two-rowed barley (Hordeum tetrastichum Kcke. x H. distichum L.)" he reported that Mendelism was not a perfect, well-established sciences. Later on, he developed the idea of modifying Mendel's theories, which he unfortunately did not published as scientific paper, because of his early death. The importance and reality of Dr. Bohutinsky's scientific thought is confirmed by the fact that Mendel's hereditary theory was later supplemented by new findings, particularly by the work of
the American biologist Morgan, the Nobel prize winner for genetics.
          In his selection work Dr. Bohutinsky also did some significant research on maize. Of theoretical importance are Dr. Bohutinsky's work on selfpollination of Pignolleto maize, and his trials with maize crossing aiming to do research on heterosis. This research was done at the time of the first reports on heterosis theory by East and Shull (1912).
          In his doctoral dissertation under the title "Exceptional forms of maize development", for which he was conferred a doctor's degree at the High School for Soil Cultivation in Vienna in 1913, he discusses and interprets some exceptional forms of maize development like viviparity on panicle, poliembryonia on ear, somatic mutation of color on maize grain (which is probably the first scientific description and interpretation of this phenomenon in the World) and he discusses the existence of "male" plants of maize.
          In practical selection he had important results with early Hungary maize, which could be sown, because of its very short vegetation, as stubble crop, and with 'Hrvatica from Krizevci', which was higher yielding than the original 'Hrvatica' maize.
          His insistence on experimental proof, his skepticism and unwillingness to theorization and to the publishing of papers on insufficiently strong experimental proofs, as well as his early death, have left Dr. Bohutinsky's work unknown to the public. Unfortunately, even the Agricultural Encyclopedia does not mention this pioneer of Croatian genetics and plant breeding.

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Dr. Milislav Demerec

1895 - 1966

World-known plant geneticist

Dr. Milislav Demerec (1914)

Milislav Demerec finished study at Higher Royal Farming and Forestry School - Krizevci. "His education at the Farming School in Krizevci gave my father a sound foundation for all his future research" - (Mrs. Zlata Hartman, 1990). A few years after graduation, he spent working on plant breeding at Plant Breeding Station - Krizevci. In this period, in coauthorship with P. Kvakan, he published several papers about genetics and inheritance in corn. He left Krizevci and after short stay at Plant Breeding Department at Grignon, France, he is moving to America. Specialization in genetics, and D.Sc. degree in the same field he obtained at Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA. in 1923. He published a lot of papers mostly about nature, structure and function of genes, spontaneous and induced mutation, and genetics of bacteria, particularly about genetic basis of bacterial resistance to antibiotics. "He was among the dozen of so giants whose work has made the United States preeminent in this biological science" - (Bently Glass in: Advances in Genetics 16, 1971).
Most of his research activity are connected to Carnage Institute in Cold Spring Harboru, NY, where he directed genetic research in Department of Genetics until retirement. "For Cold Spring Harbor it was the end of the golden age - of Demerec." - (Philipe Hartman in: Genetics 120, 1988).

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The list of professional work-positions:

1960-1966:	*Research technician* in Department of Genetics and Plant Breeding. Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Zagreb
1967-1973:	*Research assistant* in Institute for Breeding and Production of Field Crops. Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Zagreb
1973-1974:	*Research agronomist* in Institute for Breeding and Production of Field Crops. Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Zagreb
1975-1983:	*Senior research agronomist* in Department for Genetics and Plant Breeding, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Zagreb - also: *- Program leader* of Hybrid Wheat Research (1974-1984) - also: *- Coordinator* of International Wheat Restorer Germplasm Screening Nursery (1977-1982) - also: *- Research advisor* for a big social farm PIK "Vinkovci" (1978-1990) - also: *- Secretary* of Croatian Genetic Society (1980-1981)
1984-1993:	*University professor* of Plant Breeding and Seed Production at Agricultural Institute Krizevci, University of Zagreb - also: *- Principal investigator* in Cooperative YU-USA research project (1985-1990) - also: *- Director* of Agricultural Institute Krizevci (1990-1991) - also: *- Research advisor* for the private plant breeding firm: JOST Seeds-Research (1992-present) - also: *- Invited professor* of Plant Breeding at Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia (1993-94)

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MY ACTIVITIES IN FREE TIME:

Art photography: Participate at several art-photography exhibitions. The most significant were:

1964 - 14^th State Photo Exhibition, Sarajevo - Silver medal
1964 - 6^th November Exhibition of Art Photography, Kraljevo - Brass medal
1964 - 1^st Interclub Exhibition of Art Photography, Travnik - Diploma
1965 - 4^th International Photo Biennial "Man and Sea", Zadar - Diploma
1966 - 8^th International Exhibition of Student Photography, Belgrade - Silver medal
1969 - 2^nd Exhibition of Art Photography, Belgrade - Diploma
1970 - International Photo-Art Salon, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil - Diploma

Fine Art: My dream from high school period.

1962 - 1^st Independent Exhibition of graphics and small plastics, Krizevci
1985 - LSAH Art exhibition Zagreb
1985 - LAK XII Art exhibition, Krizevci
1987 - LAK XIV Art exhibition, Krizevci
1992 - LAK XIX Art exhibition, Krizevci

Jogging: For health and good will. Completely dependent on endomorpheen. Participate at:

1981 - The 1^st Ski Marathon at Plitvice lakes - Medal for the 3^rd place in category Veteran.
1982 - Cross "March 8", Zagreb - Diploma for 2^nd place in category Veteran II.
1983 to 1990 - each year at The "Marathon - Plitvice lakes" - Diplomas
1986 - The marathon "Ttreh src" - Radenci.- Diploma

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A W A R D S

1964:	The Rector First May Award for the Best Student's Scientific Paper: "Daily growth rhythm of coleoptile and radicula of rye seed irradiated with gamma rays", University of Zagreb.
1983:	Medal of Town Kyoto for scientific cooperation at occasion of The 6^th International Wheat Genetic Symposium, Kyoto, Japan.
1985:	Diploma and Medal for Contribution to Development of the Agricultural Institute Krizevci, at the 130 Anniversary of the Institution.
1991:	Certificate of Appreciation for the Scientific Endeavors and Accomplishments of the Cooperative Research Project wit the U.S. Department of Agriculture: "Maintaining genetic variability of wheat throughout composite cross population, and its improvement by recurrent selection".

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Mario Jošt

Born: August 12, 1972
in Zagreb, R.Croatia

Degree at: High School for Math &
Info. Krizevci, Croatia

Student of: Agricultural Faculty, University of Zagreb

Manager of "JOST Seeds-Research", Krizevci -
the first private wheat breeding and seed production
enterprise in Croatia.

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Kruno Jošt

Born: December 22, 1973
in Zagreb, R Croatia

Degree at:    Fayette County High
                         School, Fayetteville,
                         Georgia, USA.

Student of:   Gerrit Rietveld Academy for Art &
                         Design Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Participated: 1995 - LAK Art Exibition, Krizevci.
                         1995 - 1^sr Indeprndent Art Exibition
                         1996 - LAK Art Exibition, Krizevci
                         1996 - 2^nd Independent Art Exibition
                         "Ambient - Place of Meeting"-Krizevci.

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