Stomatal conductance

Stomatal conductance is a big phrase that refers to how much air plants let in through little holes on their leaves. These holes are called stomata, and they are like tiny mouths that allow plants to breathe in carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air and release oxygen (O2).

Think of it like this: when you eat food, you breathe in air through your mouth and nose, and your body uses that air to get energy from the food. Plants are kind of the same – they need air to get energy from the sun and grow big and strong. But since they can't move around like you can, they have to have little mouths on their leaves to do this.

Now, stomatal conductance is just a fancy way of talking about how wide those little mouths are open. The wider they are, the more air plants can breathe in, and the faster they can grow. But if the stomata are closed up really tight, it's harder for them to get any air, and they might not be able to grow as well.

Scientists like to study stomatal conductance to understand how plants work and how they can help the environment. By measuring how much air plants are taking in through their stomata, they can see how healthy they are, how much water they need, and how much CO2 they are taking out of the air (which is good for us and the planet!).