ISSN 0031-9457
printed version
ISSN 1851-5657
on-line version

Instructions to authors

This Journal publishes original articles, short and technical notes and review articles in all fields of botany, and the biology of soils or terrestrial and aquatic plants. Manuscripts reporting results of descriptive, historical and experimental studies on any aspect of botany, and soil or plant biology, and at the scale of organism, population, community, ecosystem and landscape are solicited, as well as manuscripts on ecological theory.  Phyton, International Journal of Experimental Botany also publishes Symposium proceedings, thesis and comments on recent papers in the journal. Manuscripts can be written either in English or Spanish. Authors should have manuscripts thoroughly reviewed by colleagues regarding both technical content and English or Spanish grammar in their own Institution and elsewhere before submitting them. It is not the task of the Executive Editor, Associate Editors or Journal reviewers to edit poorly prepared papers or to correct readily detectable errors. Papers not properly prepared will be returned to the author.

All parts of the manuscripts, including tables and figure legends must be typed and double-spaced throughout on one side,
wide margins on A4 white paper.
Arrange components in the following order:

Title
Abstract (not exceeding 300 words)
Introduction
Material and Methods
Results
Discussion
Acknowledgements
References
Tables in numerical sequence
Figure Legends
Figures

Title page
The title page should contain the following:

1. Main title (lowercase letters)
2. Authors listed in the order in which they are to appear and affiliation(s)
3. Institutional addresses
4. Running title (not exceeding 50 characters including punctuation and spaces)
5. Total number of figures graphs, tables or plates
6. Mailing address and e-mail of the senior author
7. Footnotes
8. The operating system and word processor used to prepare the manuscript.

ARRANGEMENT OF THE MANUSCRIPT
The manuscript must be arranged as follows:

1. Title.The title should be brief, specific and should not include abbreviations. It cannot exceed 100 characters, including spaces.
   It must always be submitted in both English and Spanish.
2. Abstract. Submit an abstract (300-word maximum) of the manuscript which must include a statement of the problem, methods of study, esults and conclusions.It must always be submitted on a separate sheet in both English and Spanish.
   Keywords must always be submitted right after each abstract in both English and Spanish.
3. Introduction.State concisely the purpose and rationale for the study.
4. Material and Methods. Describe in sufficient detail (to permit other workers to repeat the study) the plan, the experimental species, material and controls, the methods and procedures utilized and the statistical method(s) employed. >
5. Results. Present the detailed findings. Include mentions of all tables and/or figures. Figures and tables should supplement, not duplicate, the text. Emphasize only your important observations. Do not compare your observations with those of others. Such comparisons and comments are reserved for the Discussion section.
6. Discussion. Must be restricted to the analysis and interpretation of the meaning of the statistically significant results and their relation with other papers.
7. Acknowledgments.
8. References. References to articles and books should be limited to published work, work in press, or theses and dissertations.
   When citing several authors in the text, please specify the last name of the first author followed by et al.
   Citations in the text should use the following forms:
   
   Jones (1990),
   Smith & Jones (1992) or
   (Smith et al., 1991).
   
   If manuscripts are written in Spanish, the symbol “&” must be replaced by “y” anywhere in the manuscript.
   
   References should be listed in alphabetical order. Names of journals should not be abbreviated. Check the manuscript to make sure that all references are cited and that all citations in the text are included in the References. Also check to make sure that all citations have the correct format.
   
   Formats for citations
   

   Briske, D.D. & J.H. Richards (1995). Plant responses to defoliation. A physiological, morphological and demographic evaluation. In: Bedunah, D.J. and Sosebee, R.E.(eds.), pp.635-710. Wildland Plants. Physiological Ecology and Developmental Morphology. Society for Range Management, Denver, Colorado, USA. 710 p.

   Jones, H.G.(1992). Plants and microclimate. A quantitative approach to environmental plant phytiology. University Press, Cambridge. 428 p.

   Howe, H.F. & J. Smallwood (1982). Ecology of Seed Dispersal. Annual Review of Ecology and Systematics 13: 201-228.

   Saint Pierre, C., C.A. Busso, O.A. Montenegro, G.D. Rodriguez, H.D. Giorgetti, T. Montani & O.A. Bravo (2004). Defoliation tolerance and ammonium uptake rate in perennial tussock grasses. Journal of Range Management 57: 82-88.

   Flemmer, A.C., C.A. Busso, T. Montani, O.A. Fernández, C. Saint Pierre & M.L. García (1999). Growth of S. gynerioides in competition with defoliated or undefoliated desirable perennial grasses under different levels of soil water availability. People and Rangelands Building the Future, Proceedings of the VI International Rangeland Congress, Eldridge, D. & Freudenberger, D. (Eds.), Townsville, Australia, p. 248-249.

   Lencinas, M.V., G.M. Pastur, E. Gallo, A. Moretto, C.A. Busso & P. Peri (2006). Mitigation of biodiversity losses in Nothofagus pumilio managed forests of South Patagonia. Workshop on Forest Fragmentation in South America, San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina, in CD.

   Busso, C.A., M. Mazzola, B.L. Perryman & H.A. Glmp (2004). Seed weight and its relationship to environmental variables and germination in Artemisia tridentate ssp. Wyomingensis. International Conference of the Society for Ecological Restoration, August 24-26, University of Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. p 18.

9. Legends of the Figures
   Legends must be typed on separate sheets in both English and Spanish; they must contain a short description and the enlargement of optical and electron micrographs. Example: (X 20,000)

UNITS OF MEASURE
Use the International Unit System throughout the text. Details on such units can be found on the web page of the Canadian Journal of Plant Science. Please use, for example, kg/ha, kg/ha/day, kg/m2, mg/l, tillers/plant, cm/cm3, ºC, p<0.05 rather than using kg ha-1, kg ha-1 day-1, kg m-2, mg l-1, tillers plant-1, cm cm-3, C, P<0.05. When using measurement units, always utilize lowercase letters.
TABLES AND FIGURES
 
Make tables and figures self-contained and self-explanatory. They should supplement, not duplicate the text. A brief title for each table or figure should be provided in both English and Spanish. The explanations of the measures and statistics employed must be explained in footnotes to the table. Symbols and physical units must be subjected to the International System (I.S.) of abbreviations.
Color Tables and Figures will be included in the online and .pdf versions, but only in black and white in the printed version.
BRIEF NOTES
They are welcome only if the results in the paper provide a new or unique contribution of immediate importance. They are to consist of either (1) no more than 1200 words, one table or graph and one plate of photographs. They must fulfill the instructions for original articles and may or may not have subtitle/s, or (2) not more than 5000 words, and tables and/or graphs. They must follow the instructions for original articles and include their sections (i.e., Abstract, Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion and References).
PAGE CHARGES AND REPRINTS
Authors will be charged U$S 60 per printed page plus U$S 30 for handling costs once their paper is accepted for publication.
Authors will receive a .pdf file of both their article and the volume where their article has been published. Prints should be specially requested and will be charged according to current fees. Papers accepted for publication become copyright of Phyton, International Journal of Experimental Botany
NOMENCLATURE/ ACKNOWLEDGMENTS AND DEDICATIONS

The basis for the Nomenclature of taxa and syntaxa used should be indicated in the Methods section as should the latitude and longitude of the study site(s), if appropriate. Acknowledgments and dedications must be placed after the Main text and before the References
APPENDICES
Information too detailed to be included in the main text, for instance a list of areas sampled or technical details of a model may be presented in appendices. Appendices should be numbered sequentially and placed before the References.
SCIENTIFIC NAMES
Scientific names of genera and species must be given in full with authority when they are cited for the first time. If species names occur repeatedly in the text the genus name may be abbreviated. Common names must not be used.
FORMULAE
Formulae should be presented in the text. Complicated formulae should be collected and presented as a figure. Mathematical derivations should be kept to a minimum and put in an appendix.

ITALICS
Italics should be used for secondary headings, scientific names of taxa (genus and lower) and syntaxa, algebraic expressions and symbols in formulae.
PAGE PROOFS

Manuscripts should be submitted via e-mail to the Executive Editor - Phyton,International Journal of Experimental Botany:

Dr. Carlos A. Busso
cebusso@criba.edu.ar

with copy to the Managing Editor

Alejandra K. de Raggio
Fundación Romulo Raggio, Gaspar Campos 861, 1638 Vicente López, Buenos Aires, Argentina
fund_r_raggio@hotmail.com
revistaphyton@fund-romuloraggio.org.ar Copies must be sent via email including tables and/or figures.

Receipt of manuscripts will always be confirmed.

The name, address, telephone, fax number and e-mail of the author responsible for correspondence, reprints, etc. should be sent in the cover letter. Manuscripts are reviewed by members of the Editorial Board, appropriate referees, and the Executive Editor. The final decision to accept or reject a manuscript is made by the Executive Editor, who will inform authors on acceptance, revision, or rejection of manuscripts. Associate Editors will ask the reviewers to make the revision within a month. If the reviewer is unable to make the revision in such a period, He/She should report immediately to the Associate Editor about this inconvenient. If this is the case, the Associate Editor will choose another reviewer able to make the revision within a 30-day-period. Authors will also have to complete the revision within a 3-month-period. Otherwise, the manuscript will be released to the authors, and the submission to Phyton, International Journal of Experimental Botany will be considered terminated. Revised manuscripts should be submitted via e-mail to the e-mail addresses indicated above, together with an electronic copy on disk to the Executive and Managerial Editors.
Periodicity of this Journal is one volume per year, released in December every year.Manuscripts to be included in any given year will be those accepted until 30 September of that year. Accepted manuscripts after this date, will be published in the next volume.All correspondence concerning submitted manuscripts should refer to the manuscript number and should be sent via e-mail to the Executive and Managerial Editors. If the author handling correspondence changes address, the Executive and Managerial Editors should be notified immediately.

Manuscript review

Editorial correspondence should be addressed to the Executive Editor,

Carlos Alberto Busso
cebusso@criba.edu.ar

with copy to the Managerial Editor,

Alejandra K. de Raggio
fund_r_raggio@hotmail.com
revistaphyton@fund-romuloraggio.org.ar

The Executive Editor will send manuscripts for review to appropriate Associate Editors. These Associate Editors will obtain 2 reviews of each manuscript.  Reviewers are responsible for critical evaluation to determine whether or not a manuscript meets scientific and literary standards. Where reviewers disagree, the Associate Editor will review the manuscript before recommending acceptance or rejection of it to the Executive Editor, who will be responsible for editing the manuscript. The Associate Editors may also elect to return to the author those manuscripts that require revision to meet format criteria before the critical review. Manuscripts found inappropriate for Phyton will be released to the author by the Executive Editor. Associate Editors will return a manuscript to an author for revision when reviewers agree in their potential acceptance. Associate Editors must obtain a manuscript reviewed within 1 month. Revisions not returned within 3 months are considered terminated. Authors who consider that their manuscript has received an unsatisfactory review may file an appeal with the Executive Editor, who will review the manuscript. Page proofs should be returned to the Managing Editor, Alejandra K. de Raggio, Gaspar Campos 861, 1638 Vicente López, Buenos Aires, Argentina.