A stability property of symplectic packing

We prove that for any closed symplectic 4-manifold (M,Ω) with Ω]∈H ²(M, Q) there exists a number N ₀ such that for every N≥N ₀, (M,Ω) admits full symplectic packing by N equal balls. We also indicate how to compute this N ₀. Our approach is based on Donaldson's symplectic submanifold theorem and on tools from the framework of Taubes theory of Gromov invariants. Oblatum 9-I-1998 & 1-VII-1998 / Published online: 14 January 1999