A bulbil (also referred to as bulbel, bulblet, and/or pup) is a small, young plant that is reproduced vegetatively from

axillary bud The axillary bud (or lateral bud) is an embryonic or organogenic shoot located in the axil of a leaf. Each bud has the potential to form shoots, and may be specialized in producing either vegetative shoots (stems and branches) or reproductive ...

s on the parent plant's

stem Stem or STEM may refer to: Plant structures * Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang * Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure * Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...

or in place of a flower on an

inflorescence 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 forme ...

. These young plants are clones of the parent plant that produced them—they have identical genetic material. The formation of bulbils is a form of

asexual reproduction Asexual reproduction is a type of reproduction that does not involve the fusion of gametes or change in the number of chromosomes. The offspring that arise by asexual reproduction from either unicellular or multicellular organisms inherit the ...

, as they can eventually go on to form new stand-alone plants. Although some bulbils meet the botanical criterion to be considered a true

bulb In botany, a bulb is structurally a short stem with fleshy leaves or leaf basesBell, A.D. 1997. ''Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. that function as food storage organs dur ...

, there are a variety of different morphological forms of bulbils, some of which are not considered to be bulbs. Hence the reason for distinction between bulbs and bulbils. For example, some

ous plant groups, like onions and lilies, produce bulbils in the form of a secondary, small bulb. Onion and lily bulbils meet the botanical criterion to be labeled a true bulb. All bulbils produced by

ous plants are to be considered bulbs, but not all bulbils are to be considered bulbs. For example, other non-bulbous plant groups, like various genera within the subfamily

Agavoideae Agavoideae is a subfamily of monocot flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, order Asparagales. It has previously been treated as a separate family, Agavaceae. The group includes many well-known desert and dry-zone types, such as the agaves ...

, are well known to produce bulbils that do not actually meet the botanical criterion to be considered a

Bulbils in Agavoideae

Within

, bulbils develop on the

of a blooming plant. The development of bulbils in this group is common in approximately 17 ''

Agave ''Agave'' (; ; ) is a genus of monocots native to the hot and arid regions of the Americas and the Caribbean, although some ''Agave'' species are also native to tropical areas of North America, such as Mexico. The genus is primarily known for ...

'' species, all '' Furcraea'' species, and has been somewhat documented in ''

Yucca ''Yucca'' is a genus of perennial shrubs and trees in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Agavoideae. Its 40–50 species are notable for their rosettes of evergreen, tough, sword-shaped leaves and large terminal panicles of white or whitis ...

'' (particularly ''

Yucca elata ''Yucca elata'' is a perennial plant, with common names that include soaptree, soaptree yucca, soapweed, and palmella. It is native to southwestern North America, in the Sonoran Desert and Chihuahuan Desert in the United States (western Texas, N ...

''), and '' Hesperaloe''. Bulbils can develop quite quickly, many do so after the flowers die, and can persist on the inflorescence for around one to two years before falling to root in the ground. While still on the parent plant, many species develop

adventitious root Important structures in plant development are buds, shoots, roots, leaves, and flowers; plants produce these tissues and structures throughout their life from meristems located at the tips of organs, or between mature tissues. Thus, a living pla ...

s and can grow to sizes ranging from 5 to 15 centimeters, if left to mature.

References

{{Reflist Plant morphology Plant reproduction