Journal profile · Forestry
Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science
ISSN 2070-2620 · eISSN 2070-2639 · Taylor and Francis Ltd. · SOUTH AFRICA · Tri-annual · Founded 2008
Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science: CAS Zone 4 · Agricultural & Forestry Sciences (2025 upgraded edition); impact factor 1.18; hybrid open access; APC charged, amount not published; review over 12 weeks (community reports); community-reported acceptance: easy; 31 articles in 2025; indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Scope
Aims, scope and focus
Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science is published by Taylor and Francis Ltd. and is in Zone 4 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences in the CAS Journal Ranking (2025 upgraded edition). By OpenAlex counts of its recent articles, its largest topics are Forest ecology and management, Tree Root and Stability Studies and Forest Management and Policy, together about 35.9% of its articles. (generated from OpenAlex topic counts and CAS ranking data)
Southern Forests: a Journal of Forest Science is one of the leading forestry journals in the Southern Hemisphere. The journal publishes scientific articles in forest science and management of fast-growing, planted or natural forests in the Southern Hemisphere and the tropics. Papers are also encouraged on related disciplines such as environmental aspects of forestry, social forestry, agroforestry, forest engineering and management as well as the goods and services that are derived from forests as a whole. Articles published by the journal are of value to foresters, resource managers and society at large. The journal particularly encourages contributions from South America, Africa and tropical/subtropical Australasia and Asia. Publication of the journal is supported by the Southern African Institute of Forestry. Southern Forests: a Journal of Forest Science is Accredited by the Department of Higher Education and Training (South Africa).
From the journal's Aims & Scope
Research area (LetPub): Forestry
Editor-in-chief David EverardPublisher website
Editorial board by country: none in mainland China; most named South Africa 4 (4 members with a country) Editorial board ↗Publisher website ·
Main research topics OpenAlex counts of recent articles; shares are approximate
- Forest ecology and managementEnvironmental Science22.1%
- Tree Root and Stability StudiesEngineering7.4%
- Forest Management and PolicyEnvironmental Science6.4%
- Ecology and Vegetation Dynamics StudiesEnvironmental Science6%
- Plant Pathogens and Fungal DiseasesBiochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology5.2%
- Remote Sensing and LiDAR ApplicationsEnvironmental Science5.1%
- Wood Treatment and PropertiesEngineering4.9%
- Plant Water Relations and Carbon DynamicsEnvironmental Science4.6%
Rankings & indexing
CAS ranking and database indexing
CAS Journal Ranking
CAS Journal Ranking, upgraded edition (March 2025)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Forestry | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
CAS Xinrui Journal Ranking (March 2026)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Forestry | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: not marked
CAS Journal Ranking, previous upgraded edition (December 2023)Agricultural & Forestry Sciences Zone 4
| Level | Category | Zone |
|---|---|---|
| Major | Agricultural & Forestry Sciences | Zone 4 |
| Minor | Forestry | Zone 4 |
Top journal: noReview journal: no
JCR / CiteScore quartiles on the journal's website
- CiteScore Q2 · 2025
Publisher-reported: JCR figures are Clarivate's and CiteScore figures Scopus's to confirm; both are a different system from the CAS zones.Publisher website
Database indexing
SCIEScopusLetPub
International journal early-warning lists: not listed in any editionLetPub
Editions, and major and minor categories, are shown separately and never merged into one zone; check which edition your institution uses before you submit or report.
Metrics
Impact metrics and publication volume
Impact
- Impact factor
- 1.18LetPub ·
- Impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.2Publisher website ·
- 5-year impact factor (publisher) 2025
- 1.1Publisher website ·
- CiteScore 2026-06
- 1.9LetPub ·
- CiteScore (publisher) 2025
- 1.9Publisher website ·
- SJR 2026-06
- 0.36LetPub ·
- SJR (publisher) 2025
- 0.36Publisher website ·
- SNIP 2026-06
- 0.63LetPub ·
- SNIP (publisher) 2025
- 0.63Publisher website ·
- h-index
- 21LetPub ·
- h-index
- 36OpenAlex ·
- i10-index
- 230OpenAlex ·
- 2-year mean citedness
- 0.97OpenAlex ·
- Self-citation rate
- 8.3%LetPub ·
- Share of gold OA articles
- 19.75%LetPub ·
Volume
- Articles per year
- 31LetPub ·
- Downloads per year (publisher)
- 21,000Publisher website ·
- Downloads per year (publisher) 2025
- 21,000Publisher website ·
Articles by year OpenAlex count · 628 in total · the current year is incomplete
| Year | Articles | Open access | Citations |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 28 | 7 | 2 |
| 2025 | 31 | 11 | 10 |
| 2024 | 30 | 12 | 74 |
| 2023 | 21 | 5 | 88 |
| 2022 | 30 | 4 | 132 |
| 2021 | 35 | 9 | 144 |
Sources count differently and were observed at different times, so each source's own value is kept; "publisher" marks figures from the journal's website.
Review & acceptance
Review time and acceptance
- Average review time (community reports)
- over 12 weeksLetPub ·
- Average acceptance (community reports)
- EasyLetPub ·
Community reports come from authors' own submissions (confidence 0.5) and are not a promise from the journal; for publisher figures, the journal's own definitions apply.
Fees & open access
APC and open-access policy
Hybrid open accessLetPub
A subscription journal in which authors can pay to publish their article open access.
| Source | APC | Fee waiver | License | Observed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publisher website | Yes, amount not published | — | — |
A hybrid journal charges the APC only when the author chooses open access; publishing under the subscription model is usually free.
The journal's website is authoritative for fees; sources were observed at different times and each keeps its own value, without averaging.
Submission
Article types and submission policies (journal website)
Policy excerpts from the journal's websiteOpen access
- Open access Open access
Hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Model summary
Southern Forests: a Journal of Forest Science is a hybrid open access journal that is part of the Taylor & Francis Open Select publishing program, giving you the option to publish open access. Publishing open access means that your article will be free to access online immediately on publication, increasing the visibility, readership, and impact of your research. Why choose open access? Increase t…
Source ↗Publisher website ·
Excerpts are quoted from the journal's website; "model summary" lines are written by Workers AI and checked against the text. The journal's website is authoritative.
Profile
Publication details and official links
- Publisher
- Taylor and Francis Ltd.
- Country or region
- SOUTH AFRICA
- Language
- English
- Frequency
- Tri-annual
- Founded
- 2008
- ISSN
- 2070-2620
- Electronic ISSN
- 2070-2639
- Latest issue on the website
- Volume 88, Issue 2 (2026)
- Official links
- Journal homepage ↗LetPub
- Submission system ↗Publisher website
- Special issues ↗Publisher website
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science
What CAS zone is Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science in?
In the 2025 upgraded edition of the CAS Journal Ranking, Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science is in Zone 4 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences, and in Zone 4 of the minor category Forestry. In the 2026 Xinrui edition it is in Zone 4 of Agricultural & Forestry Sciences. Zones from different editions, and from major and minor categories, are not interchangeable.
What is the impact factor of Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science?
The latest impact factor listed by LetPub is 1.18; CiteScore 1.9, h-index 36.
How long does peer review take at Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science?
Authors report an average review time of over 12 weeks; the community-reported acceptance is “Easy”. Article statistics cover accepted papers only, publisher figures follow the journal's own definitions, and community reports come from authors' own submissions; none is a promise from the journal.
Where are the editorial board members of Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science based?
Of the 4 board members whose country the journal's board page names, none are in mainland China; the countries named most often are South Africa (4). Counted from the institutions listed on the board page; for reference only.
Which databases index Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science?
According to LetPub and DOAJ records, Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science is indexed in SCIE and Scopus.
Is Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science open access, and what is the APC?
Southern Forests-A Journal of Forest Science is a hybrid journal. For open-access publication: APC charged, amount not published.
Sources and updates
The facts on this page come from LetPub, OpenAlex, Publisher website; every figure is tagged with its source and the date it was observed, and conflicting values are kept per source. LetPub source page: view ↗ (archived 2026-08-25). Last updated: .