California Agriculture is a peer-reviewed journal reporting research, reviews and news in agricultural, natural and human resources. The authors are primarily, but not exclusively, faculty from the University of California and its Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. It is published four to six times a year. The first issue of California Agriculture was published in December 1946, making it one of the oldest continuously published land-grant university research publications in the country. It is also the largest-circulation publication of its kind (currently about 14,000 domestic and 1,700 foreign subscribers). The journal primarily publishes peer-reviewed research, with a short news section in the front of each issue. California Agriculture strives to present new, significant findings in a meaningful, real-world context. Our approach is geared to a well-educated, diverse readership (see Audience). We encourage authors to use direct language, to define technical terms and use interpretive tools such as glossaries and enhanced illustrations. With author approval, we deploy features of the Web to further enhance understanding.
Research articles
All published, faculty-signed papers are peer-reviewed. Research articles are up to 4,000 words in length, including tables, figures, and references. Articles are expected to contain original research representing a significant advance in one field; they may synthesize results from related experiments, presenting them in terms meaningful to both an interdisciplinary audience and educated lay readers. Reviews are up to 4,500 words in length, including tables, figures and references. They analyze the current literature in an area of research that significantly affects agricultural, natural or human resources in California. Readers should be able to learn what has been firmly established and what are unresolved questions or future directions for research. Perspectives are review articles that interpret and analyze recent developments in research and public policy and express an opinion concerning the resulting impacts on California’s agricultural, natural and human resources. New pests and diseases are shorter review articles describing new pests and diseases of statewide significance. They are generally 2,500 to 3,000 words. Authors are expected to describe the host range, geographic range and important biological characteristics of the pest, citing the relevant literature. Articles must contain California data and describe expected impacts of the pest in the state. Public policy research, surveys, case studies and program evaluations.California Agriculture publishes research that addresses broad public policy issues regarding agricultural, natural or human resources in California. We recognize that evidence can be qualitative as well as quantitative. In all cases, research should adhere to accepted standards of research methodology and statistical significance in the relevant discipline. The same standards apply to surveys, case studies and program evaluations. We encourage authors to include a comparative dimension in survey research, case studies and program evaluations. Readers should be able to understand California phenomena relative to broader scale, regional or national phenomena. Manuscripts based on routine program assessments and feedback instruments do not generally pass peer review. Please contact the Associate Editor in your subject area or the California Agriculture staff before preparing program evaluations or survey research for submission. Special collections and focus issuestypicallyincludeboth reviews and research articles onsubjects that have stimulated significant interdisciplinary research and/or extension efforts at UC, and that have interest for a wide cross-section of the audience. Suggestions for coverage are welcome. Both solicited and unsolicited articles undergo peer review. To obtain Guidelines for Special Collections and Focus Issues, please e-mail janet.white@ucop.edu. Sidebars are published in the text of signed manuscripts and illustrate or offer expanded discussion of a single aspect of the accompanying article. They are typically 600 to 1,000 words. Because of the brevity of sidebars, the conclusions drawn and assertions made must either be supported by the accompanying manuscript or by literature citations listed at the sidebar’s conclusion. Like all signed papers, faculty-authored sidebars must undergo peer review, but they are evaluated for accuracy and balance rather than for the formal presentation of scientific data.
News departments
All items in the news sections are developed by editorial staff, based on UC research and extension activity. Faculty sources review these items for accuracy and balance of presentation. However, they are not peer-reviewed articles, nor do faculty authors sign them. Suggestions for coverage are welcome. Science briefs are typically 300 words or less in length and are based on news tips and releases from campuses, research and extension centers, and county offices. They are selected based on the significance of the research and its practical value to our audience. Research updates are typically 600 to 1,200 words in length. Updates describe news or research developments that provide context for peer-reviewed articles in the current or previous issues. Outreach news items are typically 600 to 1,200 words in length. They report news of UC Cooperative Extension programs related to peer-reviewed articles in the journal. Letters to the editor are typically 300 words in length and will be edited to fit available space. Letters about material published in California Agriculture may correct errors, provide support or agreement, or offer different points of view, clarification or additional information. They may be reviewed by faculty or consultants before being published. The letters we select to publish are intended to reflect a range of opinions, and the author(s) of the article(s) addressed may be given an opportunity to reply. The reply should be concise (no more than 300 words) and respond directly to the issues raised. Letter writers should provide their full name, city and state of residence, e-mail address and phone number. Outlooks analyze recent developments in research and public policy, and express opinions concerning the resulting impacts on California’s agricultural, natural and human resources. Typically, they do not exceed 1,000 words. Introductions and Overviews are developed by editorial staff and provide context for peer-reviewed research in the current edition. Content must be of interest to a wide cross-section of our audience. Sidebars authored by editorial staff may also appear in the text of manuscripts or news articles. Like all news articles, sidebars are evaluated by sources and other faculty for accuracy and balance. Editorials and Editorial overviews synthesize or analyze recent developments in research and public policy and express opinions regarding the impacts on California’s agricultural, natural and human resources. Editorials and Editorial overviews range in length from 900 to 1,500 words, and are invited by the Vice President, Agriculture and Natural Resources, or on his/her behalf by the Editor.
Review and editing
All manuscripts submitted for publication in California Agriculture must undergo anonymous peer review before they can be accepted. We have a double-blind review policy, in which the authors and reviewers are not identified to each other. Associate Editors, who oversee review, are known to all parties. We forward each submission to the appropriate Associate Editor, who makes an initial determination of its (1) scientific soundness and (2) suitability for California Agriculture’s audience (see next section). The Associate Editor then nominates three qualified reviewers. If the first two reviews are affirmative, the article is accepted. If one is negative, we send the manuscript to a third reviewer. The Associate Editor, in consultation with the Managing Editor and/or Executive Editor, makes the final decision on the disposition of the manuscript.
In the last 3 years, the rejection rate has run close to 25%. In addition, Associate Editors send back 7% to 10% of submissions for revision prior to peer review. Although most manuscripts make it through review, few manuscripts get through review “clean.” As a rule, reviewers also require some revision before acceptance.
After we receive your final manuscript, we will begin our editing process. All California Agriculture manuscripts are extensively edited after peer review for style, grammar and clarity. Usually about 6 weeks prior to publication, you will receive edited proofs with the editor’s queries. We appreciate your prompt return of the proofs; if you would like to see a second round of proofs, please let us know at that time.
Audience
California Agriculture is edited to reach a diverse, well-educated audience. Based on a 2003 reader survey to which 66% of our subscribers responded, 33% work in agriculture (25% in production or processing, 8% in agribusiness), and 31% are either faculty members at universities or research scientists. One-fifth or 19% work in government agencies or are elected office-holders. Of respondents, 87% are college graduates, and 55% of all respondents hold advanced degrees.
Scheduling
On average, publication occurs 11 months after receipt of a manuscript, which allows time for peer review, revision, editing and scheduling. If you have an article that is time-sensitive and you want it to appear in California Agriculture, notify us immediately. In some cases, we can turn around a manuscript in a shorter time.
Manuscript preparation
In California Agriculture we try to maintain a balance between technical accuracy and a readable style to appeal to a diverse audience. Language should be simple, direct, clear and concise. Technical terminology should be used sparingly, and clearly defined at the outset.
Our surveys show that the most frequently read sections of California Agriculture are headlines, abstracts, introductions and conclusions. For this reason, we edit these sections heavily to ensure they are clear and meaningful. They must be intelligible to an educated lay audience.
Sections of the article
The text of a typical research article includes the following: Headline (title).The headline should describe the gist of the research. It must use active construction and a verb. Author names.Full names are used — ”John D. Doe” — unless the author is known by initials only. Authorship. Authors must have made a substantial professional contribution to the paper, such as formulating the problem and hypothesis, structuring the experimental design, organizing and conducting the statistical analysis, or writing a major portion of the paper. “Authorship” means that all authors listed contributed a substantial portion of the total effort required to produce the manuscript. California Agriculture asks for brief written justification of what was contributed by each author whenever the number of authors on a manuscript exceeds six.
Abstract. The abstract is usually four or five sentences long and provides an informal summary of the main points of the article. It briefly describes the research results and why they should be viewed as important. Introductory paragraphs. Introductory paragraphs state the problem and reasons for conducting the experiment. We ask authors to establish the context of their research at the beginning of their articles, and to discuss the significance of their findings for agriculture, the environment, the economy and/or Californians as a whole. This often means describing:
Standard agricultural practice.
The economic and environmental impacts of research findings.
Historic, social and geographic considerations, if any.
Text. Technical terms should be defined on first reference. Only enough of methods should be described so that the reader can understand and evaluate the results and conclusions. All tables and figures should be cited in numerical order.
If the experiment includes two or more trials, it often works best to describe the first trial and its results, then the next trial and its results; the conclusion can summarize the whole.
In addition to summarizing research, conclusions should interpret the results in terms of practical value and implications for future research. Subheads. Subheads should be descriptive clauses adding information to the article; avoid the formal journal style of “Introduction, Methods, Results, Discussion, Conclusions.” Subheads are one line, about 32 characters maximum. Author identification and acknowledgements. Author identification should include the name, title, department or other affiliation and location of all authors (see the magazine for style). After the author identification, you may thank collaborators who do not qualify for authorship; please also identify pertinent sources of research funding.For the purposes of anonymous peer review, include the author identification and acknowledgements only in your final, approved, post-review manuscript.
Matters of style
Refer to a recent issue for style.
Below are some special requests and notes. Abbreviations, symbols and acronyms. All abbreviations should be defined the first time they are used. Chemical names. We prefer the common name, with the trade name the first time in parentheses (no trademark symbol necessary). Literature citations and references. California Agriculture publishes citations and references in the interests of good scholarship and proper factual documentation. (See style guide.) In view of our space limitations, we ask authors to limit their lists to key sources of documentation. California Agriculture does not use footnotes.
Units/measurements. We publish results in standard English measurements followed by metric equivalents in parentheses. If this is too cumbersome, a box listing metric equivalents may be published in the text of the article. Very small units that are difficult to convert to English measurements can remain in metric (i.e., milligrams, milliliters, etc.).
Spell out all units on first reference (i.e., pounds per square inch, parts per million, grams per square foot, etc.). Use numerals for all units of time (3 weeks, 5 years) and size (5 acres, 10 pounds). Scientific names. Scientific names (with or without author) should be provided for all species (plants, animals, pathogens, etc.) in parentheses after the common name, the first time that a species is mentioned. Avoid putting scientific names in the headline or first sentence of the article; if possible, avoid using it until the second paragraph. After the scientific name is given once, use the common name, if there is one.
Submitting the manuscript
Please use the checklist to properly submit your manuscript to California Agriculture. We produce the journal, except for color photographs, entirely by desktop publishing, using Macintosh computers for layout and production. We strongly prefer electronic submissions using Microsoft Word.
Please include graphs or other figures, if any, at the end of the manuscript. If you have digital images or color slides, you may submit them at this time or wait until you hear that the manuscript has been accepted for publication. Please do not embed images in the text.
With your permission, California Agriculture now sends manuscripts for double-blind peer review in electronic format. We will send the manuscript to the appropriate Associate Editor, and based on his or her recommendations, refer it to two reviewers. You will receive an acknowledgment of receipt.
After we hear from the reviewers (ideally within 3 weeks), we will send you their recommendations and comments. If the manuscript has been accepted for publication, the Associate Editor will ask you to revise it in response to the reviewers’ suggestions.
After the Associate Editor approves the manuscript, we will ask for the final revised version, including revised tables and graphs, images, author identifications and acknowledgements.
The author will receive edited galleys — usually with numerous queries — for correction and approval before publication.
If you have any questions or need any guidance, please do not hesitate to e-mail or phone us. We are here to serve you, and to help disseminate useful and important research information to those who can use it. We look forward to working with you.
Checklist for submission
California Agriculture is now managing the peer review of manuscripts online. Go to http://repositories.cdlib.org/anrcs/californiaagriculture/ Click on the “Submit article” button on the lower left-hand side of the screen, and follow the instructions. If you are using the system for the first time, you will be asked to choose a password. If you have any questions about online submission, contact Janet Byron at janet.byron@ucop.edu or (510) 642-2431 x4-19.
If you prefer not to submit online, please e-mail the manuscript to us at calag@ucop.edu and janet.byron@ucop.edu.
If you do not agree to the electronic transferal of your manuscript, we will send out hard copies. If you prefer to submit by mail, send the cover letter and three copies of the manuscript to: Editor, California Agriculture, 6701 San Pablo Avenue, 2nd Floor, Oakland, CA 94608-1237.
In preparing the manuscript, please:
Double-space the whole manuscript, and include all tables, figures and captions at the end.
Use a 12-point font, such as Palatino or Times New Roman.
Leave margins that are a minimum of 1 inch.
Include line numbering (per page) and page numbers.
For the purposes of double-blind peer-review, remove all identifying information regarding all authors and co-authors.
All manuscripts must be accompanied by a cover letter. The cover letter should include:
The names, addresses, e-mail addresses, telephone numbers and affiliations of all authors. If you choose to submit online, you may include this information at the time you send your electronic submission.
The headline (title) of the paper and a statement of its main point.
The total number of words (including text, references, and figure and table legends) in the manuscript.
A statement that the material has not been published and is not under consideration for publication elsewhere. If you are planning simultaneous submission of the manuscript with a technical or trade journal, please disclose this information and/or contact the Managing Editor or Executive Editor.
A statement specifying when data was collected; and if the final data was collected more than 3 years before submission, please state why they are timely and relevant.
A statement that you permit the electronic transferal of your manuscript to peer reviewers and Associate Editors.
A list of photographic illustrations, either available or suggested.
Conditions of acceptance
When a paper is accepted for publication in California Agriculture, it is understood that:
Informed consent was obtained for studies on humans after the nature and possible consequences of the studies were explained.
Care of experimental animals was in accordance with institutional guidelines.
Photos depict situations that conform to relevant regulatory code, if any.
Authors retain copyright but agree to grant to California Agriculture (and the eScholarship Repository and UC Regents) a nonexclusive license to publish the paper in print and online.
Authors agree to disclose all affiliations, funding sources, and financial or management relationships that could be perceived as potential sources of bias.
The paper will not be released to the press or the public before publication.
Illustrative material
Captions. Include simple descriptive captions, double-spaced, for all graphs, drawings and photos, including as many relevant details as you can. We may rewrite captions at the final production stage to fit the space available in the layout; you will have the opportunity to approve and/or revise them.
Note: Our practice is to number only charts, graphs and drawings (fig. 1, fig. 2, etc.), and refer to them in text. We do not number photographs or refer to them as figures. Include photo credits if someone other than one of the authors took the photographs. Color images. We generally run four to six images per article. Submit high-resolution digital images via e-mail or CD. You may also submit 35 mm color slides, preferably originals. We will return your slides after publication. As a last resort, we can scan your good-quality color prints. Please be sure all art is identified and keyed to captions provided.
Digitized images, whether scanned from conventional prints or captured with a digital camera, must provide the resolution needed for our purposes. Digital images must be at least 300 dpi at 4”x 6” and saved as a TIFF file. An image captured on a common four-megapixel camera, at its highest resolution, is just sufficient enough to print a two-column photo, whereas an eight-megapixel camera will provide enough “headroom” for us to create a full 9” x 12 “ image. Save the file as a jpeg only as a last resort and then with as little compression as possible. Also avoid converting the image to CMYK; we prefer RGB. If you are unsure of the capabilities of your camera or have questions about content, format or transport of your artwork, please contact Davis Krauter, art director for California Agriculture, at (510) 642-4231 x4-21 or davis.krauter@ucop.edu.
The reproduction process does not improve slide quality but, rather, tends to exaggerate fuzziness and incorrect exposures, so sharp focus and correct exposure are necessities. Be sure that the subject of the photograph stands out clearly against the background, and avoid confusing light patterns.
A slightly “flat” tonal range is preferred. Avoid high contrasts and deep shadows; the printing process exaggerates lights and darks, so much detail will be lost in highlight and shadow areas.
Take several exposures of each desired subject and select the most successful ones (or feel free to let us do the selecting).
Give us as much to choose from as possible. Try to submit both horizontal and vertical format pictures to help with layout flexibility. From our point of view, the more images we have to choose from, the better.
When you know you are going to be writing an article for California Agriculture, try to anticipate your photo needs, especially if you are dealing with seasonal material. It is important to get the photos you need when it is possible to get them. We encourage you to use the professional photographers on the campuses or at ANR Communications Services at UC Davis. Photographs and other illustrations are often invaluable, information-laden components of the research articles. When submitting illustrative material, please review the content and consider seeking advice on safety issues, including the depictions of equipment use, pesticide use and food safety. Figures (charts, graphs, drawings). Figures should supplement, not duplicate, text. As a rule, California Agriculture does not directly reproduce color charts and graphs. Our art director will reformat them, and you will have the opportunity to approve and/or revise them.
For our editing and layout purposes, we ask that you separate them from the text and place them at the end of the manuscript. Number each figure and provide a numbered caption. On each graph, indicate units of measure and make interval marks along both the horizontal and vertical axes (see Council of Biology Editors Style Manual). Where curves or bars need to be differentiated, include the legend to identify them in the graph itself rather than in the caption. Tables. Tables should supplement, notduplicate the text. They should be understandable when considered apart from the article. Separate them from the text and place them at the end of the manuscript. Your reformatted, edited tables will be included with the edited proofs for your approval.
We use symbols for table footnotes as follows:
*, †,‡,§,¶,#,**,††,§§,¶¶,##
References: style guide
California Agriculture uses the “name-year system” for citing documents in the text of articles. Basically, references are cited in the text by author name and date of publication and listed at the end of the article in alphabetical order. This system is described in exhaustive detail in the CBE Manual. The following summary outlines the key features of this system, with some modifications specific to California Agriculture.
Citations
A citation includes the name of the author(s)
of the cited document and the year of publication.
(Brown 1987)
Organizational names cited as authors are generally
given in abbreviated form.
(USDA 1991)
If there are two authors, both names are given, separated by “and.” For three or more authors, give the first author’s name followed by “et al.” (not “and others” as recommended by CBE).
(Dawson and Briggs 1986)
(Dawson et al. 1987)
When citing more than one document by the same author(s), give the author name(s) once, followed by the publication dates separated by commas. Use “a, b, c...” to distinguish documents by the same author published in the same year, in order of publication sequence.
(Brown 1987, 1988)
(Smith 1986a, 1986b)
(Dawson and Briggs 1986, 1987)
Use a semicolon to separate citations of references by different authors.
(Brown 1987; Smith 1986)
(Smith 1981, 1987; Dawson and Briggs 1986)
(Dawson GL 1986; Dawson WM 1986)
References
References to documents cited in the text are listed at the end of the article under the heading “References.”
The sequence of references in the reference list is determined by two basic rules:
1) Alphabetic order by author surname. Particles such as “de” or “von” are treated as part of the name and govern alphabetization. Initial elements of surnames are alphabetized as written (e.g., St. Louis is alphabetized as “st” not “saint”).
2) Publication date (earliest to latest) determines the sequence of references that have completely identical author designations.
Examples of reference sequencing:
Jones GK. 1973.
Jones HP. 1970.
Jones HP. 1971.
Neighbors J. 1876.
[NLM] National Library of Medicine. 1991.
Smith AL. 1986a.
Smith AL. 1986b.
Stickley BT. 1977.
St Louis CH. 1972.
Vandelow MB. 1965.
von Grautschwitz ETA. 1990.
General format for references:
Journal articles: Author(s). Year. Article title. Journal title volume (issue):pages. URL (date and year accessed [if appropriate]) AND/OR doi:##/###
By including an article's digital object identifier (DOI) in your citation, you enable your reader to easily retrieve further information about the article online. Many research databases and online journals now list DOIs. California Agriculture welcomes and encourages the use of DOIs in reference to journal articles.
Books:
Author(s) [or editor(s)]. Year. Title. Place of publication: publisher name. Number of pages.
Parts of books (e.g., chapters): Author(s) of the part. Year. Title of the part. In: editor(s). Title of the book. Place of publication: publisher. Pages of the part.
Electronic resources: Author of article/name of site. Year. Name of article/Web page. URL (date and year accessed [if appropriate]) AND/OR doi:##/###
Author names are given as follows: The surname comes first, followed by initials, with no punctuation. For two to four authors, all authors are listed and their names are separated by commas. For more than four authors, the first three author names are listed, followed by “et al.”
In titles of articles, only the first word and proper nouns and proper adjectives are capitalized. Titles of books are italicized and capitalized. Titles of journals are abbreviated (except single-word titles), usually using standard abbreviations given in the CBE Manual.
For pagination, inclusive pages are given. Duplicate digits are not repeated, for example, “137–9” (for 137 through 139), “1196–201” (for 1196 through 1201). If possible, separate page numbers with “en” dashes.
For URLs beginning with “www,” do not include “http://”; include it with all others. California Agriculture welcomes and encourages the use of digital object identifiers (DOI) in addition to or instead of URLs in references to electronic resources.
Note on referencing California Agriculture articles: In 2002 (Volume 56), California Agriculture began using continuous page numbering for the first time. Articles published in California Agriculture prior to 2002 must be referenced using a volume, issue and page number. This remains the preferred format; however, articles published in 2002 and after may be referenced using volume and page number only.
Examples of references: Calflora. 2005. The Calflora Database, Berkeley, CA. www.calflora.org/index0.html (accessed March 25, 2005).
DiTomaso JM, Gerlach JD. 2000. Centaruea solstitialis L. In: Bossard CC, Randall JM, Hoshovsky M (eds.). Invasive Plants of California’s Wildlands. Berkeley, CA: UC Pr. p 101–6.
Ellstrand NC, Scheirenbeck KA. 2000. Hybridization as a stimulus for the evolution of invasiveness in plants? Proc Nat Acad Sci 97(13):7043–50.
Gerlach JD. 1997. How the west was lost: Reconstructing the invasion dynamics of yellow star-thistle and other plant invaders of western rangelands and natural areas. In: Kelly M, Wagner E, Werner P (eds.). Proc California Exotic Pest Plant Council Symposium, Vol 3. p 67–72.
Maddox DM, Mayfield A. 1985. Yellow starthistle infestations on the increase. Cal Ag 39(6):10–2.
Robbins WW, Bellue MK, Ball WS. 1941. Weeds of California (1st ed.). California State Department of Agriculture, Sacramento, CA. p 395.
[USDA] US Department of Agriculture. 2005. Vegetables 2004 Summary. National Agricultural Statistics Service. http://usda.mannlib.cornell.edu/reports/nassr/fruit/pvg-bban/vgan0105.pdf.
Villegas B. 2001a. Releases of the flower weevil, Larinus curtus, for the biological control of yellow starthistle in California in 2000. In: Woods DM (ed.). Biological Control Program Annual Summary, 2000. California Department of Food and Agriculture, Plant Health and Pest Prevention Services, Sacramento, CA. p 47.
Zeiner DC, Laudenslayer WF, Mayer KE, et al. (eds.). 1990. California’s Wildlife(Vol. 3): Mammals. California Statewide Wildlife Habitat Relationships System. California Department of Fish and Game, Sacramento, CA.
The first issue of California Agriculture was published in December 1946, making it one of the oldest continuously published land-grant university research publications in the country. It is also the largest-circulation publication of its kind (currently about 14,000 domestic and 1,700 foreign subscribers).