Author Guidelines
The editorial office of Plant Introduction reserves the right to reduce, edit, and decline manuscripts that have formatting/contextual errors or do not correspond to the journal's aims and policy. The journal also reserves the right to decline or exclude from public access the papers in the case of violation of general principles of scientific ethics and/or copyrights, plagiarism detection, or any other legal offenses before or after publishing. Sending the manuscript(s) you accept and agree with the terms of Academic Integrity and Publication Ethics Policy.
Submission procedure
Please use our online submission system or contact the editorial office directly by e-mail.
Conflicts of interest statement
At submission, you are requested to declare any conflict of interest.
Funding policy
If funding has been received for the study, it shall be listed in the manuscript and has to be listed during the submission.
Article processing charges
Article review, processing, and publication are completely free. The processing, review and/or publication of articles submitted by applicants for the third level of higher education of the budgetary form of training is also completely free.
General requirements
The journal publishes original research articles, data papers, reviews, correspondences, reports, short communications, and chronicles that have not been published before and are not under consideration for publication in other journals.
Language rules. Starting from 2020, the journal accepts manuscripts written in English only. However, all manuscripts must be additionally supported by the Title, Author(s), Affiliation(s), Abstract of at least 1800 symbols, and Keywords in Ukrainian. All references must be represented in the Roman alphabet only; therefore, all Cyrillic references must be translated, not transliterated (!), into English. If you experience difficulties with the translation of required materials into other languages, please ask the editorial office for free of charge help. Authors abroad in Ukraine are not required to provide a Ukrainian abstract, title, etc.; upon manuscript acceptance, these parts will be translated by our editorial staff at no cost.
Manuscript size. The size of manuscripts is normally limited to 15 pages; however, authors can request an extension for monographic revisions or the presentation of large datasets.
Manuscript sequence. (1) UDC – (2) article title – (3) author(s) – (4) affiliation(s) including institution, full postal address, and e-mail of corresponding author – (5) abstract containing no less than 1800 symbols without spaces – (6) keywords – (7) main body text with figures and tables – (8) acknowledgments – (9) list of references – (10) article title, author(s), affiliation(s), abstract and keywords in Ukrainian. The body text of a standard research article must be subdivided into the sections Introduction, Materials and Methods, Results, Discussion, and Conclusions.
Text requirements. Font – Times New Roman, size – 14 pt. Text indentation – 1.25, 1.5-spaced, width fitted, with margins of default size. File format – .doc or .docx.
Image requirements. All images must be provided as separate files with at least 300 dpi and at least 700x500 px resolution in .png, .jpg, .tiff, .psd, .eps or other image formats. They also should be added, but not exceptionally placed in the main text to show the preferred organization. If the figure consists of multiple images, all parts must be sent as separate files.
Table requirements. Tables can be provided either in the body of the main text or as separate .xls or .xlsx files.
Measure units. Use SI units as far as possible.
Taxa citation. Citation of all taxa must follow the recent edition of the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (in particular Articles 5, 28, and H.3). Following this code, the cultivar epithet must be enclosed by single quotes and should not be italicized, e.g., Cryptomeria japonica 'Elegans'. To check the valid names of taxa, please use IPNI, POWO, Euro+Med PlantBase, AlgaeBase, or IFPNI indexes.
The taxa of all levels must be italicized. All taxa must be supported by the author(s) citation in the first mention in the text, and later cited without author(s).
Funding. The author(s) are obliged to indicate any financing (including grants, statutory and private funds, etc.) for published research without indication of monetary amounts.
Authors contribution. In the case of more than one author, it is required to clearly indicate the contribution of each of the coauthors (e.g., research design, conducting experiments, writing the manuscript, etc.)
In-text references. All citations in the text must be in the Roman alphabet only. The journal does not allow Cyrillic in-text citations, and therefore, all Cyrillic in-text citations and citations in the References List should be translated into English. Please note that there is no need to translate or transliterate any references in other Romanian alphabets with diacritics (e.g., Slovakian, Polish, Romanian, German, French, etc.).
In-text references must follow the APA Author-Year citation style (7th edition) and must be listed chronologically and different authors separated by a semicolon: (Smith, 1999, 2002; Dunn, 2000; Nilsson et al., 2017a, 2017b). For more details on citation style please see the APA guide.
In-text references for one author shall be represented as (Kuziarin, 1998) or Kuziarin (1998); for two authors (Johnson & Young, 2003) or Johnson & Young (2003); for three or more authors (Nilsson et al., 2017) or Nilsson et al. (2017). Also they can be represented with an indication of pages as (Kuziarin, 1998, pp. 25–27) or Kuziarin (1998, pp. 25–27).
The list of references. The list of references must be organized alphabetically and follow the rules of the APA citation style. In all possible cases, references must include the doi at the end of the citation.
Examples of citation:
Book
Allen, C., Prior, P., & Hayward, A. C. (2005). Bacterial wilt: the disease and the Ralstonia solanacearum species complex. APS Press.
Book chapter
Otegui, M. S. (2007). Endosperm: development and molecular biology. In O. A. Olson (Ed.), Endosperm cell walls: formation, composition, and functions (pp. 159–178). Springer-Verlag.
Journal article
Sabo, J. L., & Power, M. E. (2002a). River-watershed exchange: effects of riverine subsidies on riparian lizards and their terrestrial prey. Ecology, 83(7), 1860–1869. https://doi.org/10.2307/3071770
Baum, C., Hrynkiewicz, K., Szymańska, S., Vitow, N., Hoeber, S., Fransson, P. M. A., & Weih, M. (2018). Mixture of Salix genotypes promotes root colonization with dark septate endophytes and changes P cycling in the mycorrhizosphere. Frontiers in Microbiology, 9, Article 1012. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2018.01012
Internet source
Williamson, R. C. (2004, June 8). Deciduous tree galls. University of Wisconsin-Madison. http://labs.russell.wisc.edu/pddc/files/Fact_Sheets/FC_PDF/Deciduous_Tree_Galls.pdf
Dissertation
Skrypchenko, N. V. (2002). Introduction of genus Actinidia Lindl. species in the Forest-Steppe of Ukraine (growth, development, peculiarities of propagation) [PhD thesis abstract, M.M. Gryshko National Botanical Garden of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine]. (In Ukrainian)
Conference proceedings
Vierstra, R. (2011, May 12–15). Atomic perspectives on phytochrome photoactivation and signaling. In Proceedings of the 35th Steenbock Symposium on Advances in Biomolecular NMR (pp. 97–98).
Legislation documents
Law of Ukraine on the Red Data Book of Ukraine. 3055-III. (2017). https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/3055-14#Text
Journal sections
Plant Introduction considers a wide range of publications, subdivided into 6 main sections. Additional sections (i.e. Congratulations) are irregular and can be established on request. During the submission, the authors can choose the preferred section for their manuscripts; however, the final decision is made by the editorial office.
Research articles
Publications that have a clear and logical structure, represent new scientific outcomes, and are at least 5 pages long. Research articles should have a long list of recent references and be well supported by illustrations and/or tables.
Data articles
The articles with labile structure representing the massifs of research data for further application, reuse, and replication by other scientists. Such articles provide new insights for others and allow them to make new interpretations for their own research tasks; therefore, they must be as precise as possible.
Discussion papers
Publications, including the articles with labile structure and size, are devoted to general questions, providing discussions and representing the author's point of view.
Review articles
Publications that present literature overviews, introduce new software, etc.
Correspondences
Correspondences are communications received by the editorial office and are worthy of publication.
Short communications
Short communications have a labile structure and are usually limited to 1–3 pages. They usually represent commentaries on or additions/corrections to previously published articles, intermediate research outcomes, taxonomical and nomenclatural notes, etc.
Proceedings
Brief publications dedicated to scientific meetings, usually without text subdivisions and references. Proceedings in a strict sense correspond to abstracts and usually have the same look.
Citation manipulation
Manuscripts must include a complete and accurate reference list that directly supports the research presented. References that are irrelevant to the manuscript’s content, added solely to increase citation counts, or used in a misleading way are not permitted. Dubious, unverifiable, duplicated, or “padded” citations (e.g., repetitive references that do not materially contribute to the argument) may be treated as a breach of publication ethics.
Authors are expected to follow recognized publication ethics standards, including COPE-aligned integrity principles. Self-citations are acceptable only when they are genuinely necessary (e.g., to reference methods, datasets, or prior findings essential for understanding the new work). Excessive or unjustified self-citation may be considered an attempt to manipulate metrics and may result in editorial action.
To ensure transparency and traceability, authors should:
- Cite precisely: attach citations to the specific statement, dataset, method, or claim they support, rather than using broad “citation clusters” without clear attribution.
- Avoid excessive consecutive citations: long strings of citations can obscure what source supports which claim and may indicate citation padding.
- Use reliable sources: prioritize peer-reviewed literature and authoritative datasets; clearly label non–peer-reviewed sources where they are necessary.
- Check citation accuracy: ensure that cited works actually support the stated claim and are correctly quoted/paraphrased.
- Avoid retracted or corrected sources: do not cite retracted articles as evidence (unless the purpose is to discuss the retraction); note major corrections when relevant.
The journal does not permit any form of citation manipulation, including (but not limited to): adding irrelevant references to satisfy reviewers/editors, “citation stacking” (mutual citation agreements), coordinated citation practices (“citation cartels”), or pressure to cite specific works for non-scholarly reasons.
If potentially manipulative citation patterns are identified, the editors may request revision of the reference list, ask for justification for specific citations (including self-citations), remove inappropriate references, or reject the manuscript. Serious or repeated cases may be handled under the journal’s ethics procedures and may lead to further measures consistent with COPE guidance.
Privacy Statement
The journal respects the privacy of all participants in the editorial and publishing process and processes personal data in accordance with recognized publication ethics standards, including the principles recommended by COPE.
Personal data of authors, reviewers, editors, and other users registered on the journal’s website (e.g., names, affiliations, contact information) are used solely for the purposes of manuscript submission, editorial processing, peer review, publication, and communication related to the journal’s activities. Such data are not shared with third parties except where necessary for the operation of the journal (e.g., publishing platforms, indexing services) or when required by law.
All manuscripts and materials submitted to the journal are treated as confidential intellectual property of the authors. Editors, reviewers, and editorial staff must not disclose, discuss, or distribute submitted manuscripts or related materials to third parties, except where necessary for the editorial and peer-review process.
The peer-review process is conducted confidentially. During the editorial and review process, participants must not disclose any information about the manuscript, including its content, status in review, reviewer reports, editorial discussions, or decisions, to anyone outside the editorial process. This requirement protects both authors and reviewers from potential harm caused by premature disclosure of research results.
Reviewers must treat all manuscripts as confidential documents and may not use, share, or build upon the authors’ unpublished ideas, data, or findings until the work is formally published.
Any requests from third parties for access to submitted manuscripts or related materials will not be granted unless explicit permission is provided by the authors or disclosure is legally required.
The journal does not retain copies of rejected manuscripts beyond the period necessary for editorial record-keeping. Reviewer reports and editorial correspondence are treated as confidential and will not be published or disclosed without the consent of the reviewer, the author(s), and the Editor-in-Chief, except where required to address serious ethical concerns.
