Visual lesson 07

Axillary bud activation

Separate the presence of an axillary meristem or bud from later bud release and elongation, then connect sustained branch outgrowth to developmental signaling, light, assimilate availability, sink competition, and the state of neighboring shoots.
Nodes & BranchingDormant-to-active axillary bud developmental sequence

Primary visual specification

Dormant-to-active axillary bud developmental sequence

Create an academically accurate dormant-to-active axillary bud developmental sequence for the Axillary bud activation lesson. Use neutral studio lighting or clean academic illustration conventions, realistic botanical proportions, readable labels where needed, no yellow cast, and no decorative elements that compete with the teaching objective.

Asset type
lesson visual
System
Nodes & Branching
Alt text prepared
Yes
Knowledge check

Can you explain what the visual is showing?

Practice

What is the most important distinction between an axillary bud being present at a node and that bud producing an elongating branch?

Track this lesson

Mark the lesson complete when you are comfortable with the visual, observations, and system context.

Evidence & further reading

Sources connected to this lesson

These references support specific biological, diagnostic, environmental, or process concepts used in this lesson. They are not a substitute for crop-specific testing or local regulatory guidance.
Peer-reviewed reviewJournal of Experimental Botany2023
Lessons from a century of apical dominance research

General flowering-plant evidence on apical dominance, axillary bud release, auxin transport, cytokinin, strigolactone, sugars, and the limits of single-signal explanations for shoot branching.

System context

Connect this lesson to the whole plant

Node and phytomer anatomy, axillary-bud establishment and release, apical dominance, phyllotaxy, developmental transitions, pruning plasticity, topping, FIM, LST, mainlining, SCROG, and branch biomechanics.
Open the full Nodes & Branching interactive module
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