The instructions below are specifically directed at authors who wish to submit a manuscript to Plant Ecology and Diversity. For general information, please visit the Publish With Us section of our website.

The Editor welcomes original research papers on all aspects of plant biological science.

Further information about the journal including links to the online sample copy and contents pages can be found on the journal homepage.

Aims and Scope

Plant Ecology and Diversity is an international journal and the new forum of the Botanical Society of Scotland for communicating results and ideas in plant science. All areas of plant biology relating to ecology, evolution and diversity are of interest, including those which explicitly deal with today's highly topical themes, such as biodiversity, conservation and global change. Submissions concerning cold environments world-wide are particularly welcome. Plant Ecology and Diversity considers for publication original research articles, short communications, reviews, and scientific correspondence that explore thought provoking ideas. Plant Ecology and Diversity has a Scottish Section, devoted publishing contributions on aspects of botany and plant ecology particular to Scotland. The journal is open to reporting 'negative results' and 'repeat experiments' that test ecological theories experimentally, in theoretically flawless and methodologically sound papers.

Manuscript preparation

Submitted manuscripts are subject to peer review at the discretion of the Editorial Office.

There are no page charges in Plant Ecology & Diversity.

1. General guidelines
   • Manuscripts should be submitted in English; British spelling and punctuation should be used.
   • A typical paper will be between 5,000-8,000 words. 
   • Manuscripts should be compiled in the following order: title page; abstract; keywords; main text; acknowledgments; appendixes (as appropriate); references; table(s) with caption(s) (on individual pages); figure caption(s) (as a list).
   • Abstracts of up to 200 words are required for all papers submitted.
   • Each paper should have a minimum of five, but no more than 10 keywords.
   • Section headings should be concise.
   • All the authors of a paper should include their full names, affiliations, postal addresses, telephone and fax numbers and email addresses on the cover page of the manuscript. One author should be identified as the Corresponding Author.
   • Authors must adhere to SI units. Units are not italicised.
   • When using a word which is or is asserted to be a proprietary term or trade mark, authors must use the symbol ® or ™.

2. Style guidelines

EndNote for Windows and Macintosh is a valuable all-in-one tool used by researchers, scholarly writers, and students to search online bibliographic databases, organize their references, and create bibliographies instantly. There is an EndNote output style that you can use for this journal if you have access to the software in your library (please visit http://www.endnote.com/support/enstyles.asp and look for TF-C CSE Name-Year). You will then need to manually modify the output style in the following manner: please use full journal titles and no punctuation after the journal title, and do not provide issue numbers.

• Description of the Journal's article and reference styles  
• Guide to using mathematical symbols and equations

 

3. Figures
   • It is in the author's interest to provide the highest quality figure format possible. Please ensure that all imported scanned material is scanned at the appropriate resolution: 1200 dpi for line art, 600 dpi for greyscale and 600 dpi for colour.
   • Figures must be saved separate to text. Please do not embed figures in the paper file.
   • Files should be saved as one of the following formats: TIFF (tagged image file format), PostScript or EPS (encapsulated PostScript), and should contain all the necessary font information and the source file of the application (e.g. CorelDraw/Mac, CorelDraw/PC).
   • All figures must be numbered in the order in which they appear in the paper (e.g. figure 1, figure 2). In multi-part figures, each part should be labelled (e.g. figure 1(a), figure 1(b)).
   • Figure captions must be saved separately, as part of the file containing the complete text of the paper, and numbered correspondingly.
   • The filename for a graphic should be descriptive of the graphic, e.g. Figure1, Figure2a.

 

4. Colour
   
   There are a limited number of colour pages within the annual page allowance. Authors should restrict their use of colour to situations where it is necessary on scientific, and not merely cosmetic, grounds. Authors of accepted papers who propose publishing figures in colour in the print version should consult Taylor & Francis at the proof stage to agree on an appropriate number of colour pages. If the colour page budget is exceeded, authors will be given the option to provide a financial contribution to additional colour reproduction costs. Figures that appear in black-and-white in the print edition of the Journal will appear in colour in the online edition, assuming colour originals are supplied.

Reproduction of copyright material

Contributors are required to secure permission for the reproduction of any figure, table or extensive extract (more than 50 words) from the text of a source that is copyrighted or owned by a party other than Taylor & Francis or the contributor. This applies to direct reproduction as well as 'derivative reproduction', where the contributor has created a new figure or table that derives substantially from a copyrighted source. Authors are themselves responsible for the payment of any permission fees required by the copyright owner. Copies of permission letters should be sent with the manuscript upon submission to the Editor(s).

• Copyright permission letter template

Supplementary online material

Authors are welcome to submit animations, movie files, sound files or any additional information for online publication.

• Information about supplementary online material

Manuscript submission

It is a condition of publication that authors assign copyright or licence the publication rights in their articles, including abstracts, to The Botanical Society of Scotland and Taylor & Francis. This enables us to ensure full copyright protection and to disseminate the article, and of course the Journal, to the widest possible readership in print and electronic formats as appropriate. Authors retain many rights under the Taylor & Francis rights policies, which can be found at www.informaworld.com/authors_journals_copyright_position. Authors are themselves responsible for obtaining permission to reproduce copyright material from other sources.

Exceptions are made for authors of Crown or US Government employees whose policies require that copyright cannot be transferred to other parties. We ask that a signed statement to this effect is submitted when returning proofs for accepted papers.

• Further details and FAQs on Taylor & Francis's policy on copyright and authors' rights

Reprints

Corresponding authors will receive free online access to their article through our website (www.informaworld.com). Reprints of articles published in Plant Ecology & Diversity can be purchased through Rightslink® when proofs are received or alternatively on our journals website. If you have any queries, please contact our reprints department at reprints@tandf.co.uk.