What is Plant cuticle?
[[File:Water drops on a leaf (2008).jpg|thumb|Water beads on a [[plant]] [[leaf]], effect of plant cuticle.]] A '''plant cuticle''' is a protective cover on the outer skin of [[Leaf|leaves]], [[Bud|young shoots]], and other parts of [[plant]]s that grow above the [[ground]].<ref>Kolattukudy, PE (1996) Biosynthetic pathways of cutin and waxes, and their sensitivity to environmental stresses. In: Plant Cuticles. Ed. by G. Kerstiens, BIOS Scientific publishers Ltd., Oxford, pp 83-108</ref> It is made of [[lipid]]s and [[hydrocarbon]] [[polymer]]s mixed with [[wax]]. The [[Plant cell|plant's skin cells]] make it.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=RIDGE|first=IRENE|date=1997|title=''Plant Cuticles: an Integrated Functional Approach''|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0021859697244436|journal=The Journal of Agricultural Science|volume=128|issue=4|pages=499–501|doi=10.1017/s0021859697244436|issn=0021-8596}}</ref> The plant cuticle can be removed from the rest of the [[plant]] by using [[enzyme]]s like [[pectinase]] and [[cellulose]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Budke|first=J. M.|last2=Goffinet|first2=B.|last3=Jones|first3=C. S.|date=2013-05-01|title=Dehydration protection provided by a maternal cuticle improves offspring fitness in the moss Funaria hygrometrica|url=https://academic.oup.com/aob/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/aob/mct033|journal=Annals of Botany|language=en|volume=111|issue=5|pages=781–789|doi=10.1093/aob/mct033|issn=0305-7364|pmc=3631323|pmid=23471009}}</ref> The plant cuticle is one of the things that [[plant]]s developed over 450 million years ago when they moved from [[life]] in [[water]] to life on [[land]]. Along with other features like [[stomata]], [[xylem]] and [[phloem]], and spaces between [[Plant cell|cells]], the cuticle helps [[plant]]s save [[water]]. It acts like a waterproof covering, protecting the places where [[gas]]es are moved. The stomatal guard cells, a kind of control mechanism, manage how much [[water]] [[Evaporation|evaporates]] and how much [[carbon dioxide]] gets exchanged.<ref>{{Citation|last