Instructions to Authors

General Requirements

Contributions to VZJ may be reviews and analyses, original research papers, notes, comments or letters to the editor, and book reviews. Notes typically would involve studies with limited scope, preliminary data or models, or unique observations, as well as analytical techniques, laboratory and field instrumentation, and computer software.

Original research findings are interpreted to mean the outcome of scholarly inquiry, investigation, modeling, or experimentation having as an objective the revision of existing concepts, the development of new concepts, or the development of new or improved techniques in some aspect of the vadose zone.

The Publications Handbook and Style Manual is the official guide for the preparation and editing of papers.

Submissions

Reviewers: Authors using Manuscript Tracker will be prompted to provide a list of potential reviewers. These reviewers must not have a conflict of interest involving the authors or paper, and the editorial board has the right to not use any reviewers suggested by authors.

Internal Reviews: If internal reviews are required at your research institution, these reviews must be completed prior to submission to the journal. If a manuscript is altered on the basis of an internal review after acceptance, publication will be delayed and the manuscript may be returned to the editorial board for an additional review.

Revision of Manuscripts: Authors have seven weeks to review and return their manuscript following reviewer and associate editor comments. Manuscripts may be released if revisions are not received, and the paper will have to be submitted as a new manuscript.

Manuscripts

Author-Paper Documentation: The submitting author should have sent each living co-author a draft copy of the manuscript and have obtained the co-author’s assent to co-authorship of it. In a footnote on the title page, include all authors' names and complete mailing addresses. Use an asterisk in the author byline to identify the corresponding author. Professional titles are not listed. Other information, such as grant funding, may be included here or placed in an acknowledgment. From time to time, authors names are either added or deleted from a given manuscript between the time of submission and publication. In situations such as this the ethical and responsible manner of handling this type of change is for the lead author to advise the author being added or deleted of the addition or deletion and to notify, in writing, the Editor and Managing Editor of the journal.

Abstract: An informative, self-explanatory abstract, not exceeding 250 words (150 words for notes), must be included. It should state specifically why and how the study was made, what the results were, and why they are important.

Tables: Each table must be on a separate page and numbered consecutively. Do not duplicate matter presented in figures. Use the following symbols for footnotes in the order shown: †, ‡, §, ¶, #, ‡‡, ..., etc. The symbols *, **, and *** are used to show statistical significance at 0.05, 0.01, and 0.001 levels, respectively, and are not used for other footnotes.

Figures: Authors are responsible for obtaining all permissions for use of figures from other publishers; supply these releases at the time the accepted manuscript is forwarded for production. Authors are also responsible for obtaining permission from individuals whose images are included in photographs. Please note that ASA-CSSA-SSSA reserves the right to publish and republish any images you submit. Type figure captions in the word-processing file following the references. Authors can publish color photos, figures, and maps. Label all figure parts. Prepare graphs and charts that will read well both on screen and as a PDF file printed from an office-quality printer. The final journal will include a PDF version of each article that closely resembles a printed journal; thus, make the figure type large enough to be legible after reduction to a final width of 8.5 cm (1 column) or 18 cm (2 columns). Authors can test a figure's legibility by reducing it to this size on a photocopier. Use open style or block letters and heavy lines that don't disappear with reduction. Any legend for graph lines or symbols should appear in the figure itself rather than in the captions.

References: The author-year system is required; numbered references are not allowed. Single-authored articles should precede multiple-author articles for which the individual is senior author. Two or more articles by the same author(s) are listed chronologically; two or more in the same year are indicated by the letters a, b, c, etc. The reference list can include theses, dissertations, abstract publications, and accessible online material. Material such as personal communications or privileged data should be cited in the text in parentheses. For chapters from books, include author(s), year, chapter title, pages, editor(s), book title, and publisher's name and location. For proceedings references, include author(s), year, article title, pages, editor(s), proceedings' title, location, date, and publisher's name and location. Authors should make sure that all references cited in the text, tables, and figure captions are listed in the reference section and vice versa. Authors should also be sure that spellings of names and dates of the references listed match the citations.

Nomenclature: Both the accepted common name and the chemical name of pesticides must be given upon first mention in the manuscript. Use chemical symbols for elements and ions, except at the beginning of a sentence or in a title or heading. The Latin binomial or trinomial and authority must be included with the common name for all plants, insects, pathogens, and animals at first mention. When referring to soils, give at least the subgroup in accord with the U.S. system of soil taxonomy. Ideally, both the series and complete family name should be given.

SI Units: The International System of Units (SI) must be used. Corresponding English or metric units may be included in parentheses after the SI value.

Official Sources

Soil: For soil series names see Soil Series of the United States, Including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USDA-SCS Misc. Publ. 1483, http://ortho.ftw.nrcs.usda.gov/cgi-bin/osd/osdname.cgi. Amendments to the U.S. system of soil taxonomy (Soil Survey Staff, 1975) have been issued in the National Soil Survey Handbook (NRCS, 1982-1996) and in Keys to Soil Taxonomy (Soil Survey Staff, 1996). Updated versions of these and other resources are available at http://soils.usda.gov/. The Glossary of Soil Science Terms is available both in hard copy (SSSA, 2001) and on the SSSA Web page (https://www.soils.org/publications/soils-glossary). It contains definitions of more than 1800 terms, a procedural guide for tillage terminology, an outline of the U.S. soil classification system, and the designations for soil horizons and layers.

Scientific Names of Plants: A Checklist of Names for 3000 vascular plants of Economic Importance (USDA Agric. Handb. 505, see also the USDA Germplasm Resources Information Network database, http://www.ars-grin.gov/npgs/searchgrin.html).

Chemical Names of Pesticides: Farm Chemicals Handbook (Meister Publishing, revised yearly).

Fungal Nomenclature: Fungi on Plants and Plant Products in the United States (APS Press).

Journal Abbreviations: Chemical Abstracts Service Source Index (American Chemical Society, revised yearly).

Manuscript Publication Fees

Final Accepted Manuscript

Sending the Final Manuscript: When your paper is accepted, the following are needed for production:

• Final Accepted Manuscript (hard copy or pdf file), including all last-minute minor corrections
  
• Matching File for Editing (MS Word is preferred). TeX files are not accepted because they do not work with our copyediting and layout system. Use keyboard formatting if possible (i.e., bold, super-/subscripts, simple variables, Greek font, etc.) and use MathType or the Word equation editor for display equations. Submit tables in a word-processing format, not as graphics. *Notice for Word 2007 users: If you have equations, they must be composed using the Microsoft Equation 3.0 editor found under INSERT OBJECT, or with another MathML format such as MathType. Do not use INSERT EQUATION, which creates images (when converted) that cannot be used for typesetting. Regrettably, we will need to return any files created with Word 2007 that contain equations created with INSERT EQUATION to the authors for resetting.
  
• Figure Files. Files accepted are pdf, TIF, or EPS. Be sure to check the quality of the file before you send it. A single pdf file with all figures is acceptable. If sending TIF or EPS files, please send one for each figure, joining multi-panel figures into one image. EPS files often do not work if the fonts have not been converted to graphics. Name files with the manuscript number, figure number, and file type extension. Artwork files should adhere to the following resolution settings: 300 dpi for line art; 150 for photos. Color should be RGB rather than CMYK. Do not include figure legends or other extraneous text in a graphic file. Please do not submit graphics as PowerPoint or Excel.

Final manuscripts files may be uploaded at http://www.manuscripttracker.com/vzj. You will need to enter your Manuscript Tracker User Name, Password, and Manuscript Number. Authors are requested to include in the electronic transfer a separate file that serves as a cover letter and includes all manuscript and file description information. Files may also be sent directly to the managing editor by mail or email.