Between 1948 and 1965, the lysenkoist pattern in Romanian biology imposed a new status of agronomic research, as “practical, useful and proletarian” applications of the evolutionary theories. The entire academic organisation of the biological sciences was thus founded on the priority of the applied sciences on fundamental knowledge. Nevertheless, all the agronomic work could be done in conformity with the specific synthesis of theories of evolution made by Lysenko.

Plant breeding was particularly concerned with the tension between practice and theory. We will analyse in parallel technical works on plant breeding and theoretical writings in “general biology” published in this period. Which were the influences of the Darwinian and Neo-lamarckian concepts on the manner in which the Romanian biologists adopted and adapted lysenkoism? Were there any consequences of their scientific training in Western universities before World War II? Was ideology more present in theoretical works than in application?

Our claim is to show how artificial selection reflected the ambiguities of lysenkoism in the particular case of Romanian biology.