Each tiller produces roots and leaves. The basal area of the stem, where roots often arise, is the crown. New tillers are anatomically and physiologically connected to older tillers. Therefore, several connected tillers may all live and share water, carbohydrates and nutrients. If one tiller dies, an adjacent tiller with established roots and leaves usually lives.
Some tillers stay vegetative, while others become reproductive and produce seedheads.
Whether a tiller becomes reproductive depends on environment and hormones produced in the plant. Vegetative growth, therefore, is favored by some grazing, which reduces the number of seedheads produced and may stimulate the formation of new tillers. Vegetative tillers usually are less stemmy and more nutritious than reproductive tillers. Seed production may be valuable, however, if the operator wishes to harvest a seed crop or if there is a need for seed to produce new seedlings in the stand. Seed production is not always essential for stand maintenance, as many grasses reproduce by vegetative means such as tillering or production of new stems from underground rhizomes.