Resistance of 2-year-old plantlets of seven European white bireh, Betula pendula, clones to birch rust, Melampsoridium betulinum, was studied in field experiments and in a leaf-disc bioassay. In addition, rust resistance of plantlets growing in a nursery under three fertilization treatments was tested. The birch clones clearly varied in their levels of resistance. One of the elones was consistently the most resistant, and two were very susceptible. Plantlets growing in the lowest fertility treatment were the most resistant. Clone x fertilization interaction was small. Trie plantlets grown in the lowest fertilization treatment, in particular, deviated from the other treatments. Cenerally good rust-resistance eorrelations were obtained between different experiments. The leaf-disc bioassay was an effective way of determining the field rust resistance of birch elones. The possibility of trade-offs between rust resistance and tree growth is discussed.