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HortScience

Instructions for Authors

HortScience is a bimonthly journal of interest to a broad array of horticultural scientists and others interested in horticulture. Its goals are to provide information on significant research, education, extension findings and methods, and developments and trends that affect the profession.

Subjects appropriate for submission to HortScience include original research results on various scientific and cultural aspects of horticulture and closely related subjects, such as:

• Breeding, cultivars, rootstocks, and germplasm resources
• Cropping efficiency
• Crop production - including: floricultural plants; grapes and berries; nursery and landscape plants; subtropical and tropical plants; temperate tree fruits and nuts; and vegetables
• Growth regulator applications
• Marketing and economics
• New cultivar and germplasm releases
• Pest management
• Plant pathology
• Postharvest biology and technology
• Propagation and tissue culture
• Seed technology
• Soil management, fertilization, and irrigation
• Turf management

Publishing Fees for Papers in HortScience.

• At least one author is an ASHS member: $100 per printed page.
  Authors who are ASHS members must indicate membership in the appropriate field on the "General Information" page when submitting manuscripts.
• Authors who are non-ASHS members: $150 per printed page.
• There are additional fees for publishing figures in color.

Submission Process:

To submit papers to HortScience online, go to hortsci.msubmit.net.

If you have previously submitted a paper to HortScience, you will be required to log in with your log in name and password.

First-time users of the online submission system must register for an account.
Instructions on how to register for an account are accessed at the bottom of the log in page.

After you have registered and logged in, you may submit a manuscript and check its progress through the system.

If you need additional help, you can click on the help signs spread throughout the system. A help dialog will pop up with context sensitive help.

Before submitting a manuscript, please gather the following information:

• First and last names for all authors
• ASHS membership status for all authors
• Postal address (for corresponding author only)
• Work telephone number (for corresponding author only)
• E-mail addresses
• Title and running title (you can cut and paste this from your manuscript)
• Abstract (you can cut and paste this from your manuscript)
• Manuscript files in PDF, Word (Please make sure the "Language" is "English (U.S.)" via Tools->Language->Set Language), WordPerfect, EPS, text, Postscript, or RTF format.
  If your paper is accepted for publication, the publisher will NOT be able to use PDF text files. PDF is acceptable for figure files for production but not for text. PDF is acceptable for the initial submission and review process.

Turn on the line number feature in your word processing program. Line numbers are used as reference points during the review process.

Provide contact information (e-mail address and institution) for any potential peer reviewers for your article.

Please do not confuse the cover letter with the cover page. The cover letter is an optional letter that accompanies the manuscript at submission. The cover page containing the title, author byline, etc. shoud be included as part of the manuscript file.

Browser Settings

• When you run the setup program for your browser, take the defaults to insure common utilities are available.
• Make sure your browser allows JavaScript. You will not be able to venture past the initial page without JavaScript enabled.
• You must also allow Cookies.
  The program writes a cookie to your system that is active until you log out. This cookie lets the system know you are a registered user and it is a security feature for the data contained in the system. The cookie is deactivated once you log out and you will receive a new one the next time you log in.

The manuscript submission process is broken into a series of 4 screens that gather detailed information about your manuscript and allow you to upload the pertinent files. The sequence of screens is as follows:

• Screen 1: A long form asking for author, title, abstract, and file quantities.
  At the bottom of this screen is a button that allows you to save what you have done and come back later. It is recommended, though, that you try to submit your paper in one session whenever possible.
• Screen 2: A screen asking for the actual file locations (via an open file dialog). After completing this screen, your files will be uploaded to our server.
• Screen 3: A completion screen that will provide you with a specific manuscript number for your manuscript.
• Screen 4: An approval screen that will allow you to verify your manuscript has been uploaded and converted to PDF correctly.

Figures, Images, Tables

Figures/Images may be embedded in the manuscript file or sent as separate files in TIFF, GIF, JPG, PDF, Postscript, or EPS format. PDF is acceptable for figure files for production but not for text.

Please note that for initial figure/image submission, you should submit the lowest resolution possible at this time that will still allow for a quality representation of your images.

You will have another chance to resubmit your images at a higher resolution that will be acceptable for print at a later date, once your paper has been accepted for publication.

Review Your Submission

After the manuscript is submitted, you will be taken to a page that will allow you to review your manuscript that has been converted to PDF. If the conversion is not correct, you can replace or delete your manuscript files as necessary.

After you have reviewed the converted files, you will need to click on "Approve Manuscript". This link will have a red arrow next to it. Throughout the system, red arrows reflect pending action items that you should address.

After you approve your manuscript, you are finished.

After a review by HortScience staff, you will receive an e-mail confirmation of successful completion of your submission.

Manuscript Tracking

To track the status of your manuscript through the review and publication process:

• Log into the system with your password.
• Click on the link represented by your manuscript tracking number and abbreviated title.
• Click on the "Check Status" link at the bottom of the displayed page.
• This procedure will display detailed tracking information about where your manuscript is in the submission/peer review process.

If you have additional questions about online submissions to HortScience, please e-mail the ASHS Publications Dept. at hortscience@ashs.org.