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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.
Hard Copy Submission: Alternatively, submit four legible double-spaced copies of each manuscript on 21.6 by 27.9 cm paper. The lines of type must be numbered on each page. Leave at least 2.5-cm margins on top, bottom, and sides. Pages should be numbered consecutively. Include figure captions (double-spaced) on a separate page at the end of the manuscript. Manuscripts should be sent to:
Dr. Rien van GenuchtenAuthors are strongly encouraged to submit papers electronically using Manuscript Tracker.
Editor, Vadose Zone Journal
U.S. Salinity Laboratory
450 West Big Springs Road
Riverside, CA 92507-4617
Tel. 909-369-4847
vzjeditor{at}ussl.ars.usda.gov
Reviewers: Authors using Manuscript Tracker will be prompted to provide a list of potential reviewers. A cover letter including suggestions of potential reviewers should accompany all hard copy submissions. 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.
Revision of Manuscripts: Authors have seven weeks to review and return their manuscript following reviewer and associate editor comments. If not returned within seven weeks, the manuscript will be released; it must then be resubmitted as a new paper.
Author-Paper Documentation: In a footnote at the bottom of 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.
Text Footnotes: Supplementary notes, such as a disclaimer on a commercial product, are numbered consecutively starting with no. 1 and should be typed at the bottom of the text page concerned.
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 were important.
Tables: Each table must be on a separate page and numbered consecutively. Do not duplicate matter presented in charts or graphs. 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: 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; do not include graphics in the figure 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.
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 (www.soils.org/sssagloss/). 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).
Sending the Final Manuscript: Both electronic and paper copies of the final accepted version of the complete manuscript are required. The hard copy version and the electronic version of the final accepted manuscript version must match exactly in all parts of the manuscript, including tables, references, and figures. If the paper was reviewed through Manuscript Tracker, final manuscripts files may be uploaded at http://www.manuscripttracker.com/vzj/finaldocs.htm. You will need to enter your User Name, Password, and Manuscript Registration Number to enter the page where files will be uploaded. It will only be possible to upload files if your paper has been accepted. 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. It is important to choose unique, descriptive file names. File names must include the manuscript Registration Number. Examples: V02-001Text.doc, V02-001Fig1.tif, V0-001Tables.wpd, V02-001coverletter.wpd. Alternatively, the electronic version of the manuscript may be submitted on disk with the hard copy version. The hard copy version must be sent to: VZJ Managing Editor, Soil Science Society of America, 677 South Segoe Road, Madison, WI, USA 53711.
Text Files: MS Word is the preferred file type, but most word-processing packages (i.e., WordPerfect) are acceptable. Rich-text format (.rtf extension) and plain text (.txt extension) files are discouraged. Tex files are not accepted. Submit tables in a word-processing format. When providing complex tables electronically, please place them in a file separate from the manuscript. Symbols and foreign characters can be set with word-processing software by altering typefaces or using the special character set. When special characters are unavailable, please note them on the hard-copy printout as not appearing properly in the electronic file. Use the software's spell-checking, page-numbering, and line-numbering functions. Use bold, italics, subscript, and superscript where necessary, but avoid excessive formatting, embedded or linked objects, reference managers, automated bulleting or numbering, and graphic images (boxes) for equations or variables where simple text will do. Do not embed artwork into a word-processing file.
Figure Files: Each individual figure should be supplied as a separate, stand-alone file for final production of accepted manuscripts. Only TIF or EPS files are usable at this time. EPS files usually do not work if the fonts have not been converted to graphics. Name files with the manuscript number, figure number, and file type extension. Examples: V02-001Fig1.tif, V02-001Fig2a.tif, V02-001Fig2b.eps, etc. Long file names are acceptable. Artwork files should adhere to the following resolution settings: 300 dpi for line art; 150 for color, grayscale, or combinations of line art and halftones. Color should be RGB rather than CMYK. Do not include figure legends or other extraneous text in a graphic file. Join multipanel figure panels into a single file; do not send each part as a separate file. Always supply a high quality hard copy printout produced from the digital files being submitted. If you cannot supply a quality file, then the hard copy can be scanned in most cases. For more detailed instructions on digital image files, see the Guidelines for Preparing Digital Image Files for Online-Only Journals. Please do not submit graphics as PowerPoint files, table files such as Excel, or embedded in the word-processing file.
For additional information or assistance, contact the lalamoodi{at}agronomy.org at SSSA Headquarters.
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