Author Guidelines
Scope of Articles
African Journal of Horticultural Science (AJHS) publishes research, review or short communication articles in a wide range of applied and basic horticultural areas dealing with biotechnology, economics, marketing, education, extension, engineering, environment, policy, science, sociology, technology and training. Special emphasis is given to development, research and technology transfer, both in physical and natural sciences, particularly as they relate to major areas of concern in horticulture. Articles being considered for publication elsewhere or published previously will not be considered. All materials submitted for publication will be reviewed and edited to meet standards of the African Journal of Horticultural Science.
Language of Publication
Please use Oxford English spelling: -ize endings for words such as ‘organize’ and ‘dramatization’; ‘analyse’, not ‘analyze’; ‘colour’, not ‘color’; ‘labelling’, not ‘labeling’, etc. Use of complex jargon must be avoided.
Format of Manuscripts
Manuscripts should be typed on A-4 portrait layout, double-spaced, with at least 2.5 cm margins, with left and right margins justified, one tab space between paragraphs, but no tab at the beginning of each paragraph. The font type should be Times New Roman throughout the manuscript and font size should be 12 for the main body text. Font size may be slightly reduced in the Abstract, Figures, Illustrations and Tables.
Parts of a Research Manuscript
Research manuscripts should preferably range from 3,000 to 4,000 words. Pages should be centrally numbered at the bottom. Each manuscript should contain the following:
- Title page
- Abstract
- Introduction
- Materials and Methods
- Results and Discussion
- Conclusions and Recommendations
- References
- Tables, Figures/Illustrations
Title
Should be succinct, descriptive of the research reported and not exceed fifteen (15) words. It should be followed by a by-line with authors’ names, physical and e-mail addresses. The corresponding author should be indicated below the contacts.
Abstract
Each research article must have an abstract that is a non-critical informative digest of the contents, conclusions and recommendations of the article. Each manuscript should have an abstract written in a single paragraph of 300 words maximum, including key words. Below the abstract, indicate up to 6 key words for indexing purposes.
Introduction
The article should begin with an Introduction, defining the problem, stating the hypothesis(es), objectives, and a brief survey of the relevant literature. It should immediately follow the abstract after skipping only one space.
Materials and Methods
Should clearly and correctly describe the materials used, their sources, conditions, experimental design, steps and data analysis procedures to enable others adopt or double-check findings.
Results and Discussion
Results support or reject the hypotheses or answer the questions stated in the introduction. The discussion section interprets the data and draws conclusions and recommendations.
Figures and Illustrations
Figures must be cited in the text in numerical order and present material that is not included in the text or tables. Figures should appear as part of the text near where they are first cited. Figures should be numbered in Arabic numerals (e.g. Figure 1) and carry specific titles at the bottom. An appropriate scale bar on the figure should be used to indicate magnification. Lettering on the figures must be sharp, large and dark enough to withstand reduction. Legends to figures should be included in the figure, giving sufficient data to make the figure comprehensible without reference to the text. Figures and tables must have captions with the number in bold and the caption in italics, e.g. Figure 1 The ABC Model of Floral Organogenesis. Figures must be supplied as separate files (i.e. not embedded within the text files) with the filename clearly identifying it, e.g. Figure 1-1.jpg for Figure 1.1. Preferred file types are jpeg or tif. Try to avoid sending images embedded in Word documents. Please supply line diagrams and graphs in black and white only (not colour) unless you have specific agreement that they will be printed in colour. The text file should just include the caption (and source and note if applicable) in the appropriate place in the text to indicate the correct position for the typesetter.
Tables
Tables must be cited in the text in numerical order and present material that is not included in the text or figures. Tables should appear as part of the text near where they are first cited. Tables should be numbered in Arabic numerals (e.g. Table 1) and given specific titles at the top. Values in tables should not be enclosed in grid lines, but be given the top, bottom and subheading borders only. Tables should appear in the chapter file, at the appropriate point in the text, with the caption above the table and note and source (if applicable) below. If the table is particularly large or complex it may be best to supply it as a separate file, as for figures.
Units
Units of measure should be metric standard international and clearly indicated.
Abbreviations
Only standard abbreviations should be used; unusual ones should be given initially in full with the abbreviation in parentheses, thereafter abbreviated.
References
- Only articles or books that have been published or are accepted for publication may be listed in references. Papers presented at conferences or symposia may be listed only if proceedings are published.
- References must be cited in the text using the Harvard system of author and date; e.g. (Macharia, 1983), (Kinuthia and Mbugua, 2000). For three or more authors use the first author’s name followed by et al. eg (Olembo et al., 2005). If citing more than one reference consecutively put them in date order, e.g. (Heard, 1984; Heard and Tyler, 1989, 1995; Adams, 1998; Adams et al, 1998). In case many citations follow a fact, separate with a colon e.g. (Macharia, 1983; Kinuthia and Mbugua, 2000; Olembo et al., 2005). Use alphabet to indicate the same first author and different manuscripts of the same year e.g, (Ojiewo et al., 2010a; 2010b) As much as possible, try to avoid unnecessary citations or those that do not carry significant weight. This helps to reduce the list of literature cited and the general length of the manuscript.
- In the list of references section journal names should be written in full names if known and references listed as follows:
Journal articles: -Blatt CR. 1976. Phosphorus and boron interaction on growth of strawberries. HortScience 11:597-599.
-Faria JLC, Segura J. 1997. Micropropagation of yellow passion fruit by axillary bud proliferation. HortScience 32:1276-1277.
-Kawata K, Ushida C, Kawai F, Kanamori M, Kuriyama A. 1995. Micropropagation of passion fruit from subcultured multiple shoot primordia. Journal of Plant Physiology 147:281-284.
Book: Nakasone HY, Paul RE. 1998. Tropical fruits. Crop Production Science in Horticulture Series. CABI, Wallingford, UK. Pp 230.
Chapter in a book: Otim-Nape GW, Thresh JM, Fargette D. 1996. Bemisia tabaci and cassava mosaic virus disease in Africa, p. 319-350. In: Gerling D, Mayer RT (Eds.). Bemisia 1995: Taxonomy, Biology, Damage, Control and Management. Intercept, Andover, UK.
Proceedings: Howler RH, Oates G, Allem A. 2001. An assessment of the impact of cassava production on the environment and biodiversity, p. 3-9. In: Hershey, C (Ed.). Proceedings of Validation Forum on Global Cassava Development Strategy held from 26th to 28th April 2001 in Rome, Italy.
Thesis/dissertation: Lwole CL. 2000. Incidence, severity and spread of cassava mosaic disease in western Kenya. M.Sc. Thesis, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya.
Footnotes
Footnotes must be avoided in the main body of the manuscript.
Parts of a Review Article
Review articles should range from 3,000 to 4,000 words and extensive literature citation. Include title page, abstract, key words, introduction, literature review, discussion/application, conclusions, acknowledgements, and list of references.
Other Articles
- Letters and viewpoints: Debates on policy issues relating to horticultural science, technology and industry; personal views and experiences relevant to important horticultural policy issues.
- News and reports: Horticultural science and technology breakthroughs or matters of concern anywhere, but with direct relevance to Africa.
- New technologies and products: Evaluation of new horticultural products and technologies developed for or relevant to African markets.
- Announcements: Information on scientific conferences, training programmes, industrial exhibitions, awards of interest to the African scientific community.
PAGE-PROOFS
Page proofs will normally be sent to the corresponding author through e-mail for correction within a specified timeframe. Failure to comply with the deadline may mean a delay in publication of the article.
SUBMISSION CHECKLIST
All items must be checked and fulfilled.
