Transpiration, or loss of water vapor from plant leaves and stems, is a process that promotes evaporative cooling, gas exchange, and the absorption and distribution of minerals and water through the plant. The process is essential for photosynthesis because it provides the plant with the water needed to synthesize glucose. Glucose in turn provides the energy and material for the maintenance, growth, repair, reproduction and structure of a plant. Transpiration is the inevitable consequence of gaseous exchange. Plant leaves are the primary organ of photosynthesis and the site of the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide (CO2). Due to the low permeability of the leaf's waxy cuticle to CO2, pores through the leaf epidermis are required to facilitate gas exchange. Known as stomata, these pores pose a problem for plants because they also allow the release of water vapor. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayIn fact, up to 99% of the water absorbed by the roots can be lost through transpiration. This correlation establishes an unsolvable problem for plants and other organisms: gas exchange without water loss. To conserve water, plants have evolved specific parameters that resist transpiration: cuticle resistance, stomatal resistance, and boundary layer resistance. The cuticle is the hydrophobic, waxy layer found throughout the aboveground tissue of a plant and acts as a barrier to the movement of water off a leaf. Special cells called guard cells control the opening or closing of each stoma. When stomata are open, transpiration rates increase; when they are closed, transpiration rates decrease. Stomata are triggered to open in the presence of minimal light so that carbon dioxide is available for the light-dependent process of photosynthesis. Stomata are the only way plants can control short-term transpiration rates. The boundary layer is a thin layer of still air that hugs the surface of the leaf. For transpiration to occur, water vapor leaving the stomata must diffuse through this immobile layer to reach the atmosphere. The larger the boundary layer, the slower the rate of transpiration. Many factors such as temperature, sunlight intensity, pH, wind and… influence the rate of transpiration. Wind alters the plant's transpiration rate by removing the boundary layer, a stationary layer of water vapor that hugs the surface of the leaves. The wind also sweeps away water particles suspended in the air near the plant, increasing the water potential of the atmosphere. A hydrated leaf would have a relative humidity close to 100%, just like the atmosphere on a rainy day. Any reduction in water in the atmosphere creates a gradient for water to move from the leaf to the atmosphere. The lower the relative humidity, the less humid the atmosphere and therefore the greater the driving force for transpiration. Removing the boundary layer in combination with increasing the water potential of the nearby atmosphere should increase the plant's transpiration rate. These two drivers are catalyzed by the wind's ability to change vapor pressure. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Wind moves air rapidly, causing it to expand. This process creates space for additional water vapor and evaporation will continue to occur as the wind blows. I decided to?