Adventitious buds along the stem can lead to epicormic branches.

Adventitious buds along the stem can lead to epicormic branches.

• A. Normal terminal buds.
• B. Seeds produced by the tree.
• C. Subnormal buds along the stem that can lead to epicormic branches.
• D. Buds produced after pruning.

Answer: (C)

Epicormic growth happens when dormant or adventitious buds along the stem become active, usually after stress or pruning. Along the stem there are subnormal buds stored beneath the bark that aren’t normally active. When hormonal signals change—such as after removing apical dominance—these latent buds can break dormancy and sprout, forming epicormic branches. This matches the idea of buds along the stem that aren’t part of the normal terminal set but can give rise to epicormic shoots. Normal terminal buds sit at the tips and aren’t responsible for epicormic growth; seeds aren’t buds; buds produced after pruning could contribute to new growth, but the question centers on latent along-the-stem buds that activate to make epicormic branches.

Epicormic growth happens when dormant or adventitious buds along the stem become active, usually after stress or pruning. Along the stem there are subnormal buds stored beneath the bark that aren’t normally active. When hormonal signals change—such as after removing apical dominance—these latent buds can break dormancy and sprout, forming epicormic branches. This matches the idea of buds along the stem that aren’t part of the normal terminal set but can give rise to epicormic shoots. Normal terminal buds sit at the tips and aren’t responsible for epicormic growth; seeds aren’t buds; buds produced after pruning could contribute to new growth, but the question centers on latent along-the-stem buds that activate to make epicormic branches.