Final answer:
Plants growing in shade have a greater specific leaf area, but their rate of photosynthesis is generally lower. They also tend to have lower light compensation and light saturation points.
Step-by-step explanation:
Plants growing in shade tend to have a greater specific leaf area compared to plants growing in sunlight. Specific leaf area refers to the ratio of leaf area to leaf mass and is an indicator of leaf thickness and ability to capture light. In shade conditions, plants have larger, thinner leaves to maximize the surface area for light capture.
On the other hand, the rate of photosynthesis is generally lower in plants growing in shade due to reduced light availability. Shade-adapted plants have altered chlorophyll pigments concentration to efficiently utilize the available light, but they still have lower rates of photosynthesis compared to plants growing in sunlight.
The light compensation point and light saturation point are also generally lower for plants growing in shade. The light compensation point is the light intensity at which the rate of photosynthesis equals the rate of respiration, while the light saturation point is the light intensity at which the rate of photosynthesis plateaus and further increases in light do not lead to an increase in photosynthetic rate.