Suckers are most likely to develop from which plant part?

Suckers are most likely to develop from which plant part?

• A. Leaves
• B. Roots
• C. Flowers
• D. Buds

Answer: (D)

Suckers come from latent buds on the rootstock or the base of the plant. When those buds wake up, they push out a vigorous new shoot from below the graft or near the roots, which is what we call a sucker. That makes the plant part involved buds, not leaves, roots, or flowers. Leaves don’t form new shoots from their tissue, roots aren’t typically the source of these above-ground shoots, and flowers are reproductive structures, not vegetative growth points. So the shoot that emerges from a plant’s rootstock base is categorized as arising from buds.

Suckers come from latent buds on the rootstock or the base of the plant. When those buds wake up, they push out a vigorous new shoot from below the graft or near the roots, which is what we call a sucker. That makes the plant part involved buds, not leaves, roots, or flowers. Leaves don’t form new shoots from their tissue, roots aren’t typically the source of these above-ground shoots, and flowers are reproductive structures, not vegetative growth points. So the shoot that emerges from a plant’s rootstock base is categorized as arising from buds.