Pinching Off the Tops of Snapdragons Causes the Plants to Make

Multiple Choice

Pinching off the tops of snapdragons causes the plants to make many more flowers than they would if left alone. Why does removal of the top cause more flowers to form?

A) Removal of an apical meristem causes a phase transition from vegetative to floral development.
B) Removal of an apical meristem causes cell division to become disorganized, as in the fass mutant of Arabidopsis.
C) Removal of an apical meristem allows more nutrients to be delivered to floral meristems.
D) Removal of an apical meristem causes outgrowth of lateral buds that produce extra branches, which ultimately produce flowers.
E) Removal of an apical meristem allows the periderm to produce new lateral branches.