Vegetative reproduction is asexual reproduction through vegetative plant organs, rather than through fusion of gametes. A rhizome can extend below ground and produce a new shoot; a plant cutting can form a root system and become independently established. A piece becoming larger is not sufficient: the process must produce a new potential individual.
The offspring usually preserves the parent's genetic combination because ordinary meiosis and fertilization are bypassed. This makes vegetative reproduction useful for propagating a selected plant, but does not guarantee complete identity indefinitely: mutations can arise during mitosis. Apomixis supplies a useful comparison, because it can preserve a maternal genetic combination through a seed rather than through vegetative plant organs.
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