Indeterminate growth

Thus, a plant that grows and produces flowers and fruit until killed by frost or some other external factor is called indeterminate.

In contrast, a determinate tomato plant grows in a more bushy shape and is most productive for a single, larger harvest, then either tapers off with minimal new growth or fruit or dies.

In reference to an inflorescence (a shoot specialised for bearing flowers, and bearing no leaves other than bracts), an indeterminate type (such as a raceme) is one in which the first flowers to develop and open are from the buds at the base, followed progressively by buds nearer to the growing tip.

In some species with determinate inflorescences however, the terminal flower blooms first, which stops the elongation of the main axis, but side buds develop lower down.

Some mushrooms – notably Cantharellus californicus – also exhibit indeterminate growth.