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Photosynthesis
The primary function of stomata in the leaf is photosynthesis. This essential process begins during daylight hours and continues only while light is present. Carbon dioxide gas is absorbed through the stomata. Once it has been absorbed, the gas is transformed into "food" sugars through photosynthesis. The plan then uses these sugars as fuel for growth, reproduction and other cellular processes.
Transpiration
If photosynthesis can be thought of as the process of creating food, then transpiration can be thought of as creating waste. Water absorbed by the plant is released through the stomata by way of the diffusive processes of transpiration. Transpiration in plants is similar to the process breathing in animals. The water released through the pores of the stomata is water vapor and is essential to the more universal processes of the water cycle.
Guard Cells
Stomata are not just simply the points on a plant where carbon dioxide enters and oxygen exits. In fact, each stoma is an agglomerate comprised to the pore itself and two guard cells that look somewhat like lips. The guard cells have the ability to swell and close of the pore from the outside world, and to shrink, allowing more of the outside world into the pore. Closing the pore is a necessary function of the stomata that can keep a plant from releasing all of its water during a draught if need be.
The World Beyond
The functions and processes inherent to the stomata are relevant not only to the plant itself, but the greater world beyond the plant. When a plant's stomata absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, it is in many ways "cleaning" the atmosphere. Furthermore, oxygen released through the stomata replaces the carbon dioxide, making the atmosphere tolerable for organisms that breath oxygen. Additionally, the water vapor released through transpiration is a crucial step in Earth's water cycle.