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In biology
Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary ...
and botany
Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...
, indeterminate growth is growth that is not terminated in contrast to determinate growth that stops once a genetically pre-determined structure has completely formed. Thus, a plant that grows and produces flower
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...
s and fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which flowering plants (also known as angiosperms) disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in parti ...
until killed by frost or some other external factor is called indeterminate. For example, the term is applied to tomato
The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word , ...
varieties that grow in a rather gangly fashion, producing fruit throughout the growing season, and in contrast to a determinate tomato plant, which grows in a more bushy shape and is most productive for a single, larger harvest, then either tapers off with minimal new growth or fruit, or dies.
Inflorescences
In reference to aninflorescence
An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed o ...
(a shoot specialised for bearing flowers, and bearing no leaves other than bracts), an indeterminate type (such as a raceme
A raceme ( or ) or racemoid is an unbranched, indeterminate type of inflorescence bearing flowers having short floral stalks along the shoots that bear the flowers. The oldest flowers grow close to the base and new flowers are produced as the ...
) is one in which the first flowers to develop and open are from the buds at the base, followed progressively by buds nearer to the growing tip. The growth of the shoot is not impeded by the opening of the early flowers or development of fruits and its appearance is of growing, producing, and maturing flowers and fruit indefinitely. In practice the continued growth of the terminal end necessarily peters out sooner or later, though without producing any definite terminal flower, and in some species it may stop growing before any of the buds have opened.
Not all plants produce indeterminate inflorescences however; some produce a definite terminal flower that terminates the development of new buds towards the tip of that inflorescence. In most species that produce a determinate'' inflorescence in this way, all of the flower buds are formed before the first ones begin to open, and all open more or less at the same time. In some species with determinate inflorescences however, the terminal flower blooms first, which stops the elongation of the main axis, but side buds develop lower down. One type of example is Dianthus
''Dianthus'' () is a genus of about 340 species of flowering plants in the family Caryophyllaceae, native mainly to Europe and Asia, with a few species in north Africa and in southern Africa, and one species (''D. repens'') in arctic North Ame ...
another type is exemplified by Allium
''Allium'' is a genus of monocotyledonous flowering plants that includes hundreds of species, including the cultivated onion, garlic, scallion, shallot, leek, and chives. The generic name ''Allium'' is the Latin word for garlic,Gledhill, David ...
and yet others by Daucus
''Daucus'' is a worldwide genus of herbaceous plants of the celery family Apiaceae of which the best-known species is the cultivated carrot. ''Daucus'' has about 25 species. The oldest carrot fossil is 1.3 Ma, and was found on the island of Made ...
.
Animals
In zoology, indeterminate growth refers to the condition where animals grow rapidly when young, and continue to grow after reaching adulthood although at a slower pace. It is common in fish, amphibians, reptiles, and many molluscs. The term also refers to the pattern of hair growth sometimes seen in humans and a few domestic breeds, where hair continues to grow in length until it is cut.Mushrooms
Some mushrooms – notably ''Cantharellus californicus
''Cantharellus'' is a genus of popular edible mushrooms, commonly known as chanterelles, a name which can also refer to the type species, '' Cantharellus cibarius''. They are mycorrhizal fungi, meaning they form symbiotic associations with plant ...
'' – also exhibit indeterminate growth.
See also
*Determinate cultivar Tomato and potato cultivars are commonly classified as determinate or indeterminate according to the amount of time that they produce new leaves and flowers. Varieties that produce few leaves and flowers over a shorter period are classed as determin ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Indeterminate Growth Plant morphology Biology