Why does secondary growth occur in dicots and not in monocots?
A - Dicots do not have primary growth so they must have secondary growth
B - The organization of vascular tissue in dicots allows for secondary growth
C - Monocots do not contain vascular tissue
D - Only dicots need growth of the shoot system
Answer: B - The organization of vascular tissue in dicots allows for secondary growth
SECONDARY growth is growth at the lateral meristem and increases the girth of the stem. The reason it occurs in dicots and not monocots is due to the structure of the xylem and phloem. In dicots it is found in rings with the xylem inside and the phloem outside which makes it easier to create both types of tissue in one location.