Publication Frequency

Plant Science Horizons (PSH) publishes one volume per calendar year with two issues annually. Within an active issue, accepted articles may be published individually after completion of editorial and production requirements, allowing articles to become available without waiting for all content in that issue to be completed.

Biannual issue-based publication

Plant Science Horizons follows a biannual publication frequency, meaning that two regular issues are published within each annual volume. One volume corresponds to one calendar year.

The journal combines this issue structure with rolling article publication: once an issue is active, individual articles may be added to that issue as soon as they have completed acceptance, production, metadata preparation, and final publication checks.

Volume 1 is already publishing in two issues

The inaugural 2026 volume contains Issue 1 and Issue 2. Published content from the first issue appeared during the journal's launch period, while articles assigned to Volume 1, Issue 2 were being published during July 2026.

This current record confirms the journal's two-issue annual structure while also showing that articles may be added to an active issue over time.

Two regular issues each year

PSH does not need to promise fixed June and December release dates unless those months are formally adopted as a permanent publication schedule. Exact issue-opening or publication dates may therefore vary while the journal maintains its commitment to two regular issues per calendar year.

Articles may be published individually within the active issue

PSH may publish accepted articles individually once production is complete instead of holding every accepted paper until the entire issue is assembled. The article is then part of the active issue and carries its final bibliographic information.

No separate Early Access claim in the current policy

The current PSH publishing record shows articles carrying final volume, issue, article identifier, and DOI information when published. For that reason, this policy does not describe a separate Early Access, Online First, or “accepted article before issue assignment” stage.

If PSH later establishes a distinct Early Access workflow, the journal should define it separately and explain how citation details change after issue assignment.

Published articles receive final citation information

Published PSH articles use electronic article identifiers and persistent DOIs. Current 2026 examples use article numbers such as e0003, e0009, and e0010.

Once formally published, articles are intended to be cited using the final journal title, year, volume, issue where applicable, article identifier, and DOI.

Persistent article identification

PSH assigns DOIs to published articles. The current 2026 DOI pattern is represented by identifiers such as 10.66835/psh.2026.e0009.

DOI metadata should be updated accurately whenever bibliographic metadata are corrected after publication.

Publication timing follows scientific and editorial readiness

A manuscript moves through technical assessment, editorial evaluation, peer review where applicable, author revision, final editorial decision, production, author proofing, metadata preparation, and publication.

Manuscripts are not accelerated at the expense of scientific review, conflict management, ethical checks, data or image assessment, or completion of necessary author revisions.

Avoid fixed promises for editorial turnaround

PSH aims to handle manuscripts efficiently, but it does not guarantee that editorial screening, peer review, revision, final decisions, or production will be completed within a fixed number of days or weeks.

Timing varies according to article type, reviewer availability, scientific complexity, number and depth of revisions, integrity or ethics queries, production requirements, and author response time.

Typical sequence from submission to publication

Reviewer deadlines are managed through the editorial workflow

Review invitations specify a requested deadline. Reviewers who cannot meet the requested timeframe are encouraged to decline promptly or contact the editorial office so that the manuscript is not delayed unnecessarily.

Revision time depends on the work required

Revision deadlines may differ for minor and major revisions. Authors should request an extension before the deadline when substantial additional work is needed.

The journal may close a revision that remains inactive for an extended period, subject to appropriate editorial communication.

Accepted does not mean immediately published

Acceptance is followed by production checks that may include final source files, copyediting, figure preparation, metadata verification, DOI preparation, licensing information, declarations, typesetting and author proof review.

Publication occurs only after the article is sufficiently complete for the journal's permanent scholarly record.

Maintaining a stable publication record

PSH aims to maintain continuity of volumes and issues and to publish according to its declared biannual frequency. Regular publication, accurate dates, complete metadata, consistent article numbering and timely DOI registration are important to the journal's long-term discoverability.

Publication regularity should be measured by the journal's actual record rather than by aspirational dates that are not consistently maintained.

Thematic collections do not replace the regular frequency

PSH may publish Special Issues or Thematic Collections focused on defined areas of plant science. These collections may be coordinated by Guest Editors or the regular editorial team.

Articles in collections follow the same scientific, ethical, peer-review and conflict-of-interest requirements as regular submissions. A thematic collection is not automatically counted as an additional regular issue unless the journal formally designates it as such.

Closing one issue and moving to the next

Once an issue is considered complete, newly published articles are assigned to the next appropriate active issue. The journal should preserve the bibliographic details of already published articles and avoid unnecessary changes to volume, issue, DOI or article identifiers after publication.

Volumes and issues form the permanent journal archive

Completed and active issues should remain accessible through the journal archive with accurate volume, issue, year and publication metadata. The archive should allow readers and indexing systems to distinguish published issues from future or forthcoming content.

Policy should describe what PSH actually does

Because PSH was launched in 2026, publication-frequency statements should remain closely aligned with the journal's real archive and production workflow. The current defensible description is biannual publication with rolling publication of completed articles within the active issue.

Terms such as “monthly,” “quarterly,” “continuous publication,” “Early Access,” or fixed issue months should be introduced only if PSH formally adopts and consistently implements those models.

Changes to frequency should follow actual journal growth

PSH may review its publication frequency as the journal develops. Any future increase in issue frequency should be based on a stable manuscript pipeline, editorial capacity, production resources, publication regularity and the ability to maintain scientific quality.

Any formal change in publication frequency should be reflected consistently across the journal website, OJS settings, author information, journal metadata, indexing records and future issue schedule.

PSH publication-frequency principles

Regular issues with timely article publication

Plant Science Horizons currently operates as a biannual journal with one annual volume and two regular issues. Within each active issue, completed articles may be published individually as they become publication-ready. This approach supports timely dissemination while preserving clear volume, issue, article and DOI metadata for the permanent scholarly record.