Biosystematics and Phylogenetic Taxonomy of Plants

Dear Colleagues,

Modern plant taxonomy integrates characters and data from many fields of the biological sciences, such as comparative morphology, anatomy, cytology, palynology, embryology, genetics, molecular biology, physiology, ecology, phytochemistry, phytogeography, and paleobotany, in order to characterize the intra- to supraspecific levels of variability and better understand the phylogenetic relationships among plants and their evolution. Many genera and families in plants show a complex taxonomical history, with many cryptic taxa revealing a considerable morphological variation but without clear boundaries supporting a clear taxonomic delimitation. The integration of different methodological approaches can be useful in recognizing new taxa, disentangling cryptic species, delimiting patterns of hybridization, solving ancient taxonomic problems and addressing evolutionary dynamics and lineage diversification in plant groups. Biosystematic and phylogenetic studies strongly contribute to deepen our knowledge of plant diversity essential for management and conservation planning of native flora.

Therefore, this Special Issue aims to collect articles that advance knowledge and understanding of plant biodiversity, systematics and evolution, through integrative analyses of different taxonomic traits, i.e., morphological, anatomical, cytological, biochemical, genetical, etc. Studies addressing new taxa descriptions, characterization and delimitation of cryptic species, phylogenetic relationships and/or revised classification of critical taxonomic groups are welcome.

Prof. Dr. Cristina Salmeri
Prof. Dr. Salvatore Brullo
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. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly 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 2700 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.