Tasks imposed by contemporary agriculture on plant breeding are becoming increasingly complex. In order to meet these requirements breeders are applying various methods to expand genetic variability of stock materials for breeding work. Distant crossing is one of them. Wild subspecies are potential donors of such traits as resistance to diseases, adverse environmental factors or male sterility. Pollen grain germination and penetration of pollen tubes were analyzed in the Secale cereale (L.) species based on pollination between three cultivars of common rye (cv. Dańkowskie Złote, Dańkowskie Nowe, Amilo) and a wild subspecies Secale cereale ssp. afghanicum. Reciprocal cross pollinations were performed and pistils were fixed at 10 time points from pollination from 10’ to 4 h. The process of fertilisation was observed by fluorescence staining preparations with aniline blue. In comparison to the control, i.e. open-pollination within cv. Dańkowskie Złote, pollen grain abundance and germination on stigmas in reciprocal crosses with the wild subspecies were lower. Pollen grain germination and penetration of pollen tubes to the ovary were delayed in relation to the control. Symptoms of incompatibility were observed, numerous kernels did not germinate and callose reaction was observed in pollen tubes, along with rupture of tubes and their disorientation, while a lower number of pollen tubes penetrated to ovaries. In all the tested combinations pollen tubes were observed at the micropyles as late as after 4 h from pollination, with pollination efficiency within 0.36-7.91 %. In the control experiment penetration of pollen tubes into micropyles was observed as early as after 2³°h at pollination efficiency of 91%. It was found that in the three tested rye cultivars the pollen-pistil interaction varied, with cv. Dańkowskie Złote confirmed as the best for crossing with Secale cereale ssp. afghanicum. No marked differences were found between directions of crossing in processes taking place at the stigma. Crossing efficiency was poor, although it was higher when common rye was the maternal plant.