Organic Production of Horticultural Crops in Protected Cropping Systems

Dear Colleagues,

Protected cropping structures (e.g., high tunnels, rain shelters) or materials (e.g., insect-proof netting, weed control fabric) have been increasingly adopted by horticultural growers for organic production. For example, high tunnels can provide an organic way to reduce leaf disease and some pests, while helping to meet the requirements of local markets. However, differing from open field production or conventional protected cultivation, organic production in protected cropping systems needs some special considerations on varying aspects, from protected cropping system building or installation, to crop production (e.g., crop rotation, fertility management, and pest control), to materials’ disposal at season’s end. Studies in this area can not only fill the knowledge gaps, but also can potentially benefit practical production.

To facilitate communication among researchers in this field, this Special Issue on “Organic Production of Horticultural Crops in Protected Cropping Systems” will publish articles (original research manuscripts and review articles) that focus on microclimate adjustment (e.g., management of light, temperature, humidity, CO2), crop management (e.g., training and pruning, intercropping, relay cropping), soil and nutrient management (weeds’ prevention, mulching, fertilizer, irrigation), and disease and pest management during organic production in protected cropping systems.

Dr. Yun Kong
Dr. Jie Zhang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Horticulturae is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.