Shoots are new plant growth, they can include stems

Plant stem

A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaves, inflorescence , conifer cones, roots, other stems etc. The internodes distance one node from another...

, flowering stems with flower buds, and leaves. The new growth from seed germination that grows upward is a shoot where leaves will develop. In the spring, perennial plant shoots are the new growth that grows from the ground in herbaceous

Herbaceous

A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaves and stems that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. They have no persistent woody stem above ground...

 plants or the new stem and/or flower growth that grows on woody plants.

In everyday speech, shoots are often confused with stems

Plant stem

A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaves, inflorescence , conifer cones, roots, other stems etc. The internodes distance one node from another...

. Stems, which are a critical component of shoots, provide an axis for buds, fruits, and leaves.

Shoots are often eaten by animals because the fibres

Natural fiber

Fibers or fibres are a class of hair-like materials that are continuous filaments or are in discrete elongated pieces, similar to pieces of thread. They can be spun into filaments, thread, or rope. They can be used as a component of composite materials. They can also be matted into sheets to...

 in the new growth have not yet completed secondary cell wall

Cell wall

The cell wall is the tough, usually flexible but sometimes fairly rigid layer that surrounds some types of cells. It is located outside the cell membrane and provides these cells with structural support and protection, and also acts as a filtering mechanism. A major function of the cell wall is to...

 development, this makes shoots softer and easier to chew and digest. As shoots grow and age, the cells develop completed cell walls that have a hard and tough structure. Some plants (e.g. bracken

Bracken

Bracken are several species of large, coarse ferns of the genus Pteridium. Ferns are vascular plants that have alternating generations, large plants that produce spores and small plants that produce sex cells . Brackens are in the family Dennstaedtiaceae, which are noted for their large, highly...

) produce toxin

Toxin

A toxin is a poisonous substance produced within living cells or organisms; man-made substances created by artificial processes are thus excluded...

s that make their shoots inedible or less palatable.

See also

• Stem
  Plant stem
  A stem is one of two main structural axes of a vascular plant. The stem is normally divided into nodes and internodes, the nodes hold buds which grow into one or more leaves, inflorescence , conifer cones, roots, other stems etc. The internodes distance one node from another...
  
  
• Bud
  Bud
  In botany, a bud is an undeveloped or embryonic shoot and normally occurs in the axil of a leaf or at the tip of the stem. Once formed, a bud may remain for some time in a dormant condition, or it may form a shoot immediately. Buds may be specialized to develop flowers or short shoots, or may have...
  
  
• Lammas growth
  Lammas growth
  Lammas growth, also called Lammas leaves, Lammas flush, second shoots, or summer shoots, is a season of renewed growth in some trees in temperate regions put on in July and August , that is around Lammas day, August 1, which is the Celtic harvest festival.It can occur in both hardwoods and...
  
   a second burst of growth late in the growing season exhibited by some trees.
• Lateral shoot
  Lateral shoot
  Commonly called branch. It develops from axillary buds on the stem's surface.A lateral shoot is a part of a plant's shoot system.-See also:Apical dominance*Campbell, Neil A. Biology Eighth Edition Pearson: pg 740...