During their vegetative growth, plants reiteratively produce leaves, buds, and internodes at the apical end of the shoot. The identity of these organs changes as the shoot develops. Some traits change gradually, but others change in a coordinated fashion, allowing shoot development to be divided into discrete juvenile and adult phases. The transition between these phases is called vegetative phase change. Historically, vegetative phase change has been studied because it is thought to be associated with an increase in reproductive competence. However, this is not true for all species; indeed, heterochronic variation in the timing of vegetative phase change and flowering has made important contributions to plant evolution. In this review, we describe the molecular mechanism of vegetative phase change, how the timing of this process is controlled by endogenous and environmental factors, and its ecological and evolutionary significance.

在营养生长过程中，植物反复产生叶子、芽和芽顶端的节间。这些器官的特性随着芽的发育而变化。一些性状逐渐变化，但另一些性状以协调的方式变化，使枝条发育分为离散的幼年期和成年期。这些阶段之间的过渡称为营养阶段变化。历史上，人们对营养阶段的变化进行了研究，因为它被认为与繁殖能力的提高有关。然而，并非所有物种都是如此。事实上，营养阶段变化和开花时间的异时变异对植物进化做出了重要贡献。在这篇综述中，我们描述了营养阶段变化的分子机制，该过程的时间如何受内源和环境因素控制，及其生态和进化意义。