Senescence The natural process of aging in plants is senescence. It involves all the changes occurring in plants causing the death of tissues, cells and the entire plant body. This process takes place in various ways which affects the entire plant or a part of a plant. Senescence takes place in flowers, leaves, stems, fruits and roots. However, commonly, it takes place at different intervals in different organs. In several perennial herbs such as alfalfa, the complete part over the ground ... Cell senescence — a state of irreversible cell-growth arrest — has important physiological functions and is a key driver of ageing. Senescence is the gradual deterioration of functional characteristics in living organisms with age. Learn about the hallmarks, evolutionary and mechanistic theories of senescence, and the variation among species and organisms. Senescence in plants is the same as in human beings. However, this process is essential for plants to survive. A visible example of this situation in plants is when they shed leaves during autumn.