Summary:

In the study, it was pointed to a small utilisation of potential agricultural productivity in Poland (on average, around 62%), under the conditions of existing water deficiencies. Results of the study confirm that using new technologies and rational management, plant yields harvested can be higher than average ones in the region (in winter wheat growing by 14,7 dt•ha-1, i.e. by 37,1%) and be close to the potential yields. Higher crops growing intensity results in an improved water use efficiency.In water management aiming at increase of water resources, agricultural retention play an important role (so called "small retention"), which is made up of soil retention and landscape retention. Increasing the water retention by only 1% in the studied "Rów Wyskoć" mikrocatchment, in Wielkopolska region, would decrease the annual water discharge from this catchment by 4% and it would amount to 8.9% of the discharge during the vegetation period (IV-IX). Different agrotechnical measures of increasing soil retention were discussed as well as the effect of cropping pattern and nonagricultural elements on the water retention of the landscape were considered.