Step 1: Concept
Vernalisation is the induction of a plant's flowering process by exposure to the prolonged cold of winter, or an artificial equivalent.
Step 2: Meaning
It ensures that reproductive development and seed production occur in the favorable spring and summer rather than the cold winter.
Step 3: Analysis
Seed dormancy is a state of suspended growth. Leaf fall is abscission. Stem elongation is often regulated by gibberellins. Vernalisation specifically links low temperatures to the transition to flowering.
Step 4: Conclusion
Therefore, the term refers to the qualitative or quantitative dependence of plants on low temperature to initiate flowering.
Final Answer: (B)