OrganisationDeep Dive

The Transpiration Process

Part of Transpiration · GCSE GCSE Biology revision

This deep dive covers The Transpiration Process within Transpiration for GCSE Biology. Transpiration process, stomatal control, factors affecting rate, plant adaptations, measuring transpiration, and practical investigations It is section 4 of 21 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.

Topic position

Section 4 of 21

Practice

21 questions

Recall

25 flashcards

The Transpiration Process

Definition and Mechanism

Transpiration is the evaporation of water from plant leaves through stomata. This process is both inevitable (a consequence of gas exchange) and essential (driving water and mineral transport).

The process occurs in three stages:

  • Evaporation: Water evaporates from mesophyll cell surfaces into air spaces
  • Diffusion: Water vapor diffuses through air spaces to stomata
  • Loss: Water vapor exits through open stomata to atmosphere

The Transpiration Stream

The transpiration stream is the continuous movement of water through a plant:

  1. Root hair cells absorb water by osmosis
  2. Water moves across root cortex to xylem
  3. Transpiration creates negative pressure (tension) in xylem
  4. Water pulled up xylem vessels by cohesion-tension
  5. Water moves from xylem to mesophyll cells
  6. Water evaporates from cell surfaces and exits via stomata
Painted full plant transpiration pathway: blue water molecules absorbed at root hairs in brown soil, flowing upward through xylem vessels in the stem, evaporating as water vapour clouds out of stomata on the leaves. Sun in upper right drives the transpiration pull.

Keep building this topic

Read this section alongside the surrounding pages in Transpiration. That gives you the full topic sequence instead of a single isolated revision point.

Practice Questions for Transpiration

What is transpiration?

  • A. The evaporation of water from plant leaves through stomata
  • B. The movement of sugars through phloem
  • C. The absorption of water by root hair cells
  • D. The process of photosynthesis in leaves
1 markfoundation

Describe the three stages of transpiration in a leaf.

3 marksstandard

Quick Recall Flashcards

What is a xerophyte?
A plant adapted to survive in dry/arid conditions with limited water availability (e.g., cacti, marram grass).
What is a potometer?
An apparatus that measures the rate of water uptake by a plant shoot. Used to estimate transpiration rate (though actually measures uptake, not loss).

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