Precipitation
In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravity. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, sleet, snow and hail. Precipitation occurs when a portion of the atmosphere becomes saturated with water vapor, so that the water condenses and "precipitates", thus and mist are not precipitation but suspensions, because the water vapor does not condense sufficiently to precipitate. Two processes acting together, can lead to air becoming saturated: cooling the air or adding water vapor to the air. Precipitation forms as smaller droplets coalesce via collision with other rain drops or ice crystals within a cloud. Short, intense periods of rain in scattered locations are called "showers."Moisture, lifted or otherwise forced to rise over a layer of sub-freezing air at the surface may be condensed into clouds and rain. This process is active when freezing rain occurs. A stationary front is present near the area of freezing rain and serves as the foci for forcing and rising air.
Provided necessary and sufficient atmospheric moisture content, the moisture within the rising air will condense into clouds, namely stratus and cumulonimbus. The cloud droplets will grow large enough to form raindrops and descend toward the Earth where they will freeze on contact with exposed objects. Where warm water bodies are present, for example due to water evaporation from lakes, lake-effect snowfall becomes a concern downwind of the warm lakes within the cold cyclonic flow around the backside of extratropical cyclones. Lake-effect snowfall can be locally heavy. Thundersnow is possible within lake effect precipitation bands. In mountainous areas, heavy precipitation is possible where upslope flow is maximized within windward sides of the terrain at elevation. On the leeward side of mountains, desert climates can exist due to the dry air caused by compressional heating. Most precipitation is caused by convection; the movement of the monsoon trough, or intertropical convergence zone, brings rainy seasons to savannah climes.
Precipitation is a major component of the water cycle, is responsible for depositing the fresh water on the planet. 505,000 cubic kilometres of water falls as precipitation each year. Given the Earth's surface area, that means the globally averaged annual precipitation is 990 millimetres, but over land it is only 715 millimetres. Climate classification systems such as the Köppen climate classification system use average annual rainfall to help differentiate between differing climate regimes. Precipitation may occur on other celestial bodies, e.g. when it gets cold, Mars has precipitation which most takes the form of frost, rather than rain or snow. Precipitation is a major component of the water cycle, is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the planet. 505,000 km3 of water falls as precipitation each year, 398,000 km3 of it over the oceans. Given the Earth's surface area, that means the globally averaged annual precipitation is 990 millimetres. Mechanisms of producing precipitation include convective and orographic rainfall.
Convective processes involve strong vertical motions that can cause the overturning of the atmosphere in that location within an hour and cause heavy precipitation, while stratiform processes involve weaker upward motions and less intense precipitation. Precipitation can be divided into three categories, based on whether it falls as liquid water, liquid water that freezes on contact with the surface, or ice. Mixtures of different types of precipitation, including types in different categories, can fall simultaneously. Liquid forms of precipitation include drizzle. Rain or drizzle that freezes on contact within a subfreezing air mass is called "freezing rain" or "freezing drizzle". Frozen forms of precipitation include snow, ice needles, ice pellets and graupel; the dew point is the temperature to which a parcel must be cooled in order to become saturated, condenses to water. Water vapor begins to condense on condensation nuclei such as dust and salt in order to form clouds. An elevated portion of a frontal zone forces broad areas of lift, which form clouds decks such as altostratus or cirrostratus.
Stratus is a stable cloud deck which tends to form when a cool, stable air mass is trapped underneath a warm air mass. It can form due to the lifting of advection fog during breezy conditions. There are four main mechanisms for cooling the air to its dew point: adiabatic cooling, conductive cooling, radiational cooling, evaporative cooling. Adiabatic cooling occurs when air expands; the air can rise due to convection, large-scale atmospheric motions, or a physical barrier such as a mountain. Conductive cooling occurs when the air comes into contact with a colder surface by being blown from one surface to another, for example from a liquid water surface to colder land. Radiational cooling occurs due to the emission of infrared radiation, either by the air or by the surface underneath. Evaporative cooling occurs when moisture is added to the air through evaporation, which forces the air temperature to cool to its wet-bulb temperature, or until it reaches saturation; the main ways water vapor is added to the air are: wind convergence into areas of upward motion, precipitation or virga falling from above, daytime heating evaporating water from the surface of oceans, water bodies or wet lan
Transpiration
Transpiration is the process of water movement through a plant and its evaporation from aerial parts, such as leaves and flowers. Water is necessary for plants but only a small amount of water taken up by the roots is used for growth and metabolism; the remaining 97–99.5% is lost by transpiration and guttation. Leaf surfaces are dotted with pores called stomata, in most plants they are more numerous on the undersides of the foliage; the stomata are bordered by guard cells and their stomatal accessory cells that open and close the pore. Transpiration occurs through the stomatal apertures, can be thought of as a necessary "cost" associated with the opening of the stomata to allow the diffusion of carbon dioxide gas from the air for photosynthesis. Transpiration cools plants, changes osmotic pressure of cells, enables mass flow of mineral nutrients and water from roots to shoots. Two major factors influence the rate of water flow from the soil to the roots: the hydraulic conductivity of the soil and the magnitude of the pressure gradient through the soil.
Both of these factors influence the rate of bulk flow of water moving from the roots to the stomatal pores in the leaves via the xylem. Mass flow of liquid water from the roots to the leaves is driven in part by capillary action, but driven by water potential differences. If the water potential in the ambient air is lower than the water potential in the leaf airspace of the stomatal pore, water vapor will travel down the gradient and move from the leaf airspace to the atmosphere; this movement lowers the water potential in the leaf airspace and causes evaporation of liquid water from the mesophyll cell walls. This evaporation increases the tension on the water menisci in the cell walls and decrease their radius and thus the tension, exerted on the water in the cells; because of the cohesive properties of water, the tension travels through the leaf cells to the leaf and stem xylem where a momentary negative pressure is created as water is pulled up the xylem from the roots. In taller plants and trees, the force of gravity can only be overcome by the decrease in hydrostatic pressure in the upper parts of the plants due to the diffusion of water out of stomata into the atmosphere.
Water is absorbed at the roots by osmosis, any dissolved mineral nutrients travel with it through the xylem. The cohesion-tension theory explains. Water molecules stick together, or exhibit cohesion; as a water molecule evaporates from the surface of the leaf, it pulls on the adjacent water molecule, creating a continuous flow of water through the plant. Plants regulate the rate of transpiration by controlling the size of the stomatal apertures; the rate of transpiration is influenced by the evaporative demand of the atmosphere surrounding the leaf such as boundary layer conductance, temperature and incident sunlight. Soil water supply and soil temperature can influence stomatal opening, thus transpiration rate; the amount of water lost by a plant depends on its size and the amount of water absorbed at the roots. Transpiration accounts for most of the water loss by a plant by the leaves and young stems. Transpiration serves to evaporatively cool plants, as the evaporating water carries away heat energy due to its large latent heat of vaporization of 2260 kJ per litre.
During a growing season, a leaf will transpire many times more water than its own weight. An acre of corn gives off about 3,000–4,000 gallons of water each day, a large oak tree can transpire 40,000 gallons per year; the transpiration ratio is the ratio of the mass of water transpired to the mass of dry matter produced. Transpiration rates of plants can be measured by a number of techniques, including potometers, porometers, photosynthesis systems and thermometric sap flow sensors. Isotope measurements indicate. Recent evidence from a global study of water stable isotopes shows that transpired water is isotopically different from groundwater and streams; this suggests that soil water is not as well mixed as assumed. Desert plants have specially adapted structures, such as thick cuticles, reduced leaf areas, sunken stomata and hairs to reduce transpiration and conserve water. Many cacti conduct photosynthesis in succulent stems, rather than leaves, so the surface area of the shoot is low. Many desert plants have a special type of photosynthesis, termed crassulacean acid metabolism or CAM photosynthesis, in which the stomata are closed during the day and open at night when transpiration will be lower.
To maintain the pressure gradient necessary for a plant to remain healthy they must continuously uptake water with their roots. They need to be able to meet the demands of water lost due to transpiration. If a plant is incapable of bringing in enough water to remain in equilibrium with transpiration an event known as cavitation occurs. Cavitation is when the plant cannot supply its xylem with adequate water so instead of being filled with water the xylem begins to be filled with water vapor; these particles of water vapor form blockages within the xylem of the plant. This prevents the plant from being able to transport water throughout its vascular system. There is no apparent pattern of. If not taken care of, cavitation can cause a plant to reach its permanent wilting point, die. Therefore, the plant must have a method by which to remove this cavitation blockage, or it must create
Humidity
Humidity is the amount of water vapour present in air. Water vapour, the gaseous state of water, is invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for dew, or fog to be present; the amount of water vapour needed to achieve saturation increases as the temperature increases. As the temperature of a parcel of air decreases it will reach the saturation point without adding or losing water mass; the amount of water vapour contained within a parcel of air can vary significantly. For example, a parcel of air near saturation may contain 28 grams of water per cubic metre of air at 30 °C, but only 8 grams of water per cubic metre of air at 8 °C. Three primary measurements of humidity are employed: absolute and specific. Absolute humidity describes the water content of air and is expressed in either grams per cubic metre or grams per kilogram. Relative humidity, expressed as a percentage, indicates a present state of absolute humidity relative to a maximum humidity given the same temperature.
Specific humidity is the ratio of water vapor mass to total moist air parcel mass. Humidity plays an important role for surface life. For animal life dependent on perspiration to regulate internal body temperature, high humidity impairs heat exchange efficiency by reducing the rate of moisture evaporation from skin surfaces; this effect can be calculated using a heat index table known as a humidex. Absolute humidity is the total mass of water vapor present in mass of air, it does not take temperature into consideration. Absolute humidity in the atmosphere ranges from near zero to 30 grams per cubic metre when the air is saturated at 30 °C. Absolute humidity is the mass of the water vapor, divided by the volume of the air and water vapor mixture, which can be expressed as: A H = m H 2 O V n e t; the absolute humidity changes as air pressure changes, if the volume is not fixed. This makes it unsuitable for chemical engineering calculations, e.g. in drying, where temperature can vary considerably.
As a result, absolute humidity in chemical engineering may refer to mass of water vapor per unit mass of dry air known as the humidity ratio or mass mixing ratio, better suited for heat and mass balance calculations. Mass of water per unit volume as in the equation above is defined as volumetric humidity; because of the potential confusion, British Standard BS 1339 suggests avoiding the term "absolute humidity". Units should always be checked. Many humidity charts are given in g/kg or kg/kg; the field concerned with the study of physical and thermodynamic properties of gas–vapor mixtures is named psychrometrics. The relative humidity of an air-water mixture is defined as the ratio of the partial pressure of water vapor in the mixture to the equilibrium vapor pressure of water over a flat surface of pure water at a given temperature: ϕ = p H 2 O p H 2 O ∗ Relative humidity is expressed as a percentage. Relative humidity is an important metric used in weather forecasts and reports, as it is an indicator of the likelihood of precipitation, dew, or fog.
In hot summer weather, a rise in relative humidity increases the apparent temperature to humans by hindering the evaporation of perspiration from the skin. For example, according to the Heat Index, a relative humidity of 75% at air temperature of 80.0 °F would feel like 83.6 °F ±1.3 °F. Specific humidity is the ratio of the mass of water vapor to the total mass of the moist air parcel. Specific humidity is equal to the mixing ratio, defined as the ratio of the mass of water vapor in an air parcel to the mass of dry air for the same parcel; as temperature decreases, the amount of water vapor needed to reach saturation decreases. As the temperature of a parcel of air becomes lower it will reach the point of saturation without adding or losing water mass. A device used to measure humidity is called a hygrometer. A humidistat is a humidity-triggered switch used to control a dehumidifier. There are various devices used to regulate humidity. Calibration standards for the most accurate measurement include the gravimetric hygrometer, chilled mirror hygrometer, electrolytic hygrometer.
The gravimetric method, while the most accurate, is cumbersome. For fast and accurate measurement the chilled mirror method is effective. For process on-line measurements, the most used sensors nowadays are based on capacitance measurements to measure relative humidity with internal conversions to d
Temperature
Temperature is a physical quantity expressing hot and cold. It is measured with a thermometer calibrated in one or more temperature scales; the most used scales are the Celsius scale, Fahrenheit scale, Kelvin scale. The kelvin is the unit of temperature in the International System of Units, in which temperature is one of the seven fundamental base quantities; the Kelvin scale is used in science and technology. Theoretically, the coldest a system can be is when its temperature is absolute zero, at which point the thermal motion in matter would be zero. However, an actual physical system or object can never attain a temperature of absolute zero. Absolute zero is denoted as 0 K on the Kelvin scale, −273.15 °C on the Celsius scale, −459.67 °F on the Fahrenheit scale. For an ideal gas, temperature is proportional to the average kinetic energy of the random microscopic motions of the constituent microscopic particles. Temperature is important in all fields of natural science, including physics, Earth science and biology, as well as most aspects of daily life.
Many physical processes are affected by temperature, such as physical properties of materials including the phase, solubility, vapor pressure, electrical conductivity rate and extent to which chemical reactions occur the amount and properties of thermal radiation emitted from the surface of an object speed of sound is a function of the square root of the absolute temperature Temperature scales differ in two ways: the point chosen as zero degrees, the magnitudes of incremental units or degrees on the scale. The Celsius scale is used for common temperature measurements in most of the world, it is an empirical scale, developed by a historical progress, which led to its zero point 0 °C being defined by the freezing point of water, additional degrees defined so that 100 °C was the boiling point of water, both at sea-level atmospheric pressure. Because of the 100-degree interval, it was called a centigrade scale. Since the standardization of the kelvin in the International System of Units, it has subsequently been redefined in terms of the equivalent fixing points on the Kelvin scale, so that a temperature increment of one degree Celsius is the same as an increment of one kelvin, though they differ by an additive offset of 273.15.
The United States uses the Fahrenheit scale, on which water freezes at 32 °F and boils at 212 °F at sea-level atmospheric pressure. Many scientific measurements use the Kelvin temperature scale, named in honor of the Scots-Irish physicist who first defined it, it is a absolute temperature scale. Its zero point, 0 K, is defined to coincide with the coldest physically-possible temperature, its degrees are defined through thermodynamics. The temperature of absolute zero occurs at 0 K = −273.15 °C, the freezing point of water at sea-level atmospheric pressure occurs at 273.15 K = 0 °C. The International System of Units defines a scale and unit for the kelvin or thermodynamic temperature by using the reliably reproducible temperature of the triple point of water as a second reference point; the triple point is a singular state with its own unique and invariant temperature and pressure, along with, for a fixed mass of water in a vessel of fixed volume, an autonomically and stably self-determining partition into three mutually contacting phases, vapour and solid, dynamically depending only on the total internal energy of the mass of water.
For historical reasons, the triple point temperature of water is fixed at 273.16 units of the measurement increment. There is a variety of kinds of temperature scale, it may be convenient to classify them theoretically based. Empirical temperature scales are older, while theoretically based scales arose in the middle of the nineteenth century. Empirically based temperature scales rely directly on measurements of simple physical properties of materials. For example, the length of a column of mercury, confined in a glass-walled capillary tube, is dependent on temperature, is the basis of the useful mercury-in-glass thermometer; such scales are valid only within convenient ranges of temperature. For example, above the boiling point of mercury, a mercury-in-glass thermometer is impracticable. Most materials expand with temperature increase, but some materials, such as water, contract with temperature increase over some specific range, they are hardly useful as thermometric materials. A material is of no use as a thermometer near one of its phase-change temperatures, for example its boiling-point.
In spite of these restrictions, most used practical thermometers are of the empirically based kind. It was used for calorimetry, which contributed to the discovery of thermodynamics. Empirical thermometry has serious drawbacks when judged as a basis for theoretical physics. Empirically based thermometers, beyond their base as simple direct measurements of ordinary physical properties of thermometric materials, can be re-calibrated, by use of theoretical physical reasoning, this can extend their range of adequacy. Theoretically-based temperature scales are based directly on theoretical arguments those of thermodynamics, kinetic theory and quantum mechanics, they rely on theoretical properties of idealized materials. They are more or less comparable with feasible physical devices and materials. Theoretically based temperature scales are used to provide calibrating standards for practi
Soil plant atmosphere continuum
The soil-plant-atmosphere continuum is the pathway for water moving from soil through plants to the atmosphere. Continuum in the description highlights the continuous nature of water connection through the pathway; the low water potential of the atmosphere, higher water potential inside leaves, leads to a diffusion gradient across the stomatal pores of leaves, drawing water out of the leaves as vapour. As water vapour transpires out of the leaf, further water molecules evaporate off the surface of mesophyll cells to replace the lost molecules since water in the air inside leaves is maintained at saturation vapour pressure. Water lost at the surface of cells is replaced by water from the xylem, which due to the cohesion-tension properties of water in the xylem of plants pulls additional water molecules through the xylem from the roots toward the leaf; the transport of water along this pathway occurs in components, variously defined among scientific disciplines: Soil physics characterizes water in soil in terms of tension, Physiology of plants and animals characterizes water in organisms in terms of diffusion pressure deficit, Meteorology uses vapour pressure or relative humidity to characterize atmospheric water.
SPAC integrates these components and is defined as a:...concept recognising that the field with all its components constitutes a physically integrated, dynamic system in which the various flow processes involving energy and matter occur and independently like links in the chain. This characterises the state of water in different components of the SPAC as expressions of the energy level or water potential of each. Modelling of water transport between components relies on SPAC, as do studies of water potential gradients between segments. Ecohydrology Evapotranspiration Hydraulic redistribution.
Capillary action
Capillary action is the ability of a liquid to flow in narrow spaces without the assistance of, or in opposition to, external forces like gravity. The effect can be seen in the drawing up of liquids between the hairs of a paint-brush, in a thin tube, in porous materials such as paper and plaster, in some non-porous materials such as sand and liquefied carbon fiber, or in a biological cell, it occurs because of intermolecular forces between surrounding solid surfaces. If the diameter of the tube is sufficiently small the combination of surface tension and adhesive forces between the liquid and container wall act to propel the liquid; the first recorded observation of capillary action was by Leonardo da Vinci. A former student of Galileo, Niccolò Aggiunti, was said to have investigated capillary action. In 1660, capillary action was still a novelty to the Irish chemist Robert Boyle, when he reported that "some inquisitive French Men" had observed that when a capillary tube was dipped into water, the water would ascend to "some height in the Pipe".
Boyle reported an experiment in which he dipped a capillary tube into red wine and subjected the tube to a partial vacuum. He found that the vacuum had no observable influence on the height of the liquid in the capillary, so the behavior of liquids in capillary tubes was due to some phenomenon different from that which governed mercury barometers. Others soon followed Boyle's lead; some thought that liquids rose in capillaries because air could not enter capillaries as as liquids, so the air pressure was lower inside capillaries. Others thought that the particles of liquid were attracted to each other and to the walls of the capillary. Although experimental studies continued during the 18th century, a successful quantitative treatment of capillary action was not attained until 1805 by two investigators: Thomas Young of the United Kingdom and Pierre-Simon Laplace of France, they derived the Young–Laplace equation of capillary action. By 1830, the German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss had determined the boundary conditions governing capillary action.
In 1871, the British physicist William Thomson determined the effect of the meniscus on a liquid's vapor pressure—a relation known as the Kelvin equation. German physicist Franz Ernst Neumann subsequently determined the interaction between two immiscible liquids. Albert Einstein's first paper, submitted to Annalen der Physik in 1900, was on capillarity. Capillary penetration in porous media shares its dynamic mechanism with flow in hollow tubes, as both processes are resisted by viscous forces. A common apparatus used to demonstrate the phenomenon is the capillary tube; when the lower end of a glass tube is placed in a liquid, such as water, a concave meniscus forms. Adhesion occurs between the fluid and the solid inner wall pulling the liquid column along until there is a sufficient mass of liquid for gravitational forces to overcome these intermolecular forces; the contact length between the top of the liquid column and the tube is proportional to the radius of the tube, while the weight of the liquid column is proportional to the square of the tube's radius.
So, a narrow tube will draw a liquid column along further than a wider tube will, given that the inner water molecules cohere sufficiently to the outer ones. Capillary action is seen in many plants. Water is brought high up in trees by branching. Capillary action for uptake of water has been described in some small animals, such as Ligia exotica and Moloch horridus. In the built environment, evaporation limited capillary penetration is responsible for the phenomenon of rising damp in concrete and masonry, while in industry and diagnostic medicine this phenomenon is being harnessed in the field of paper-based microfluidics. In physiology, capillary action is essential for the drainage of continuously produced tear fluid from the eye. Two canaliculi of tiny diameter are present in the inner corner of the eyelid called the lacrimal ducts. Wicking is the absorption of a liquid by a material in the manner of a candle wick. Paper towels absorb liquid through capillary action, allowing a fluid to be transferred from a surface to the towel.
The small pores of a sponge act as small capillaries, causing it to absorb a large amount of fluid. Some textile fabrics are said to use capillary action to "wick" sweat away from the skin; these are referred to as wicking fabrics, after the capillary properties of candle and lamp wicks. Capillary action is observed in thin layer chromatography, in which a solvent moves vertically up a plate via capillary action. In this case the pores are gaps between small particles. Capillary action draws ink to the tips of fountain pen nibs from a reservoir or cartridge inside the pen. With some pairs of materials, such as mercury and glass, the intermolecular forces within the liquid exceed those between the solid and the liquid, so a convex meniscus forms and capillary action works in reverse. In hydrology, capillary action describes the attraction of water molecules to soil particles. Capillary action is responsible for moving groundwater from wet areas of the soil to dry a
Deciduous
In the fields of horticulture and botany, the term deciduous means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves in the autumn. The term deciduous means "the dropping of a part, no longer needed" and the "falling away after its purpose is finished". In plants, it is the result of natural processes. "Deciduous" has a similar meaning when referring to animal parts, such as deciduous antlers in deer, deciduous teeth in some mammals. Wood from deciduous trees is used in a variety of ways in several industries including lumber for furniture and flooring, bowling pins and baseball bats and furniture, cabinets and paneling. In botany and horticulture, deciduous plants, including trees and herbaceous perennials, are those that lose all of their leaves for part of the year; this process is called abscission. In some cases leaf loss coincides with winter -- namely in polar climates. In other parts of the world, including tropical and arid regions, plants lose their leaves during the dry season or other seasons, depending on variations in rainfall.
The converse of deciduous is evergreen, where foliage is shed on a different schedule from deciduous trees, therefore appearing to remain green year round. Plants that are intermediate may be called semi-deciduous. Other plants are semi-evergreen and lose their leaves before the next growing season, retaining some during winter or dry periods; some trees, including a few species of oak, have desiccated leaves that remain on the tree through winter. Many deciduous plants flower during the period when they are leafless, as this increases the effectiveness of pollination; the absence of leaves improves wind transmission of pollen for wind-pollinated plants and increases the visibility of the flowers to insects in insect-pollinated plants. This strategy is not without risks, as the flowers can be damaged by frost or, in dry season regions, result in water stress on the plant. There is much less branch and trunk breakage from glaze ice storms when leafless, plants can reduce water loss due to the reduction in availability of liquid water during cold winter days.
Leaf drop or abscission involves complex physiological changes within plants. The process of photosynthesis degrades the supply of chlorophylls in foliage; when autumn arrives and the days are shorter or when plants are drought-stressed, deciduous trees decrease chlorophyll pigment production, allowing other pigments present in the leaf to become apparent, resulting in non-green colored foliage. The brightest leaf colors are produced when days grow short and nights are cool, but remain above freezing; these other pigments include carotenoids that are yellow and orange. Anthocyanin pigments produce red and purple colors, though they are not always present in the leaves. Rather, they are produced in the foliage in late summer, when sugars are trapped in the leaves after the process of abscission begins. Parts of the world that have showy displays of bright autumn colors are limited to locations where days become short and nights are cool. In other parts of the world, the leaves of deciduous trees fall off without turning the bright colors produced from the accumulation of anthocyanin pigments.
The beginnings of leaf drop starts when an abscission layer is formed between the leaf petiole and the stem. This layer is formed in the spring during active new growth of the leaf; the cells are sensitive to a plant hormone called auxin, produced by the leaf and other parts of the plant. When auxin coming from the leaf is produced at a rate consistent with that from the body of the plant, the cells of the abscission layer remain connected; the elongation of these cells break the connection between the different cell layers, allowing the leaf to break away from the plant. It forms a layer that seals the break, so the plant does not lose sap. A number of deciduous plants remove nitrogen and carbon from the foliage before they are shed and store them in the form of proteins in the vacuoles of parenchyma cells in the roots and the inner bark. In the spring, these proteins are used as a nitrogen source during the growth of new leaves or flowers. Plants with deciduous foliage have advantages and disadvantages compared to plants with evergreen foliage.
Since deciduous plants lose their leaves to conserve water or to better survive winter weather conditions, they must regrow new foliage during the next suitable growing season. Evergreens suffer greater water loss during the winter and they can experience greater predation pressure when small. Losing leaves in winter may reduce damage from insects. Removing leaves reduces cavitation which can damage xylem vessels in plants; this allows deciduous plants to have xylem vessels with larger diameters and therefore a greater rate of transpiration during the summer growth period
