secondary growth


noun Botany.

an increase in the thickness of the shoots and roots of a vascular plant as a result of the formation of new cells in the cambium.

Scientific definitions for secondary growth

secondary growth

Growth in vascular plants resulting from the production of layers of secondary tissue by a lateral meristem (the cork cambium or the vascular cambium). The new tissue accumulates and results in thicker branches and stems. Secondary growth occurs in gymnosperms, most eudicots, and woody magnoliids (such as the magnolia). Most monocots and herbaceous plants undergo little or no secondary growth but simply stop growing when their primary tissues mature. Compare primary growth.