Why would plant need to absorb through the leaves if the roots have sufficient moisture?

I doubt it is very bad as they get rained on, but I don't think it is best. It can encourage mold and the only time I have heard it recommended is for delicate seedlings.

Roots need moisture...leaf uptake is minimal to negligible with misting.

Misting is generally used in arid/dry areas with high temperatures (such as our large food belt stretching from Yuma, MX to the Salton Sea in California) to create a localized microclimate which keeps the tops of the plants cool.

Houseplants do enjoy an occasional (not daily) misting to "clean" leaves as well as upset any spider mites who may be setting up on your indoor plants.

I guess the question would be why are you misting them in the first place? For what purpose? Are these established plants? Just to water them? If so then it is not only potentially harmful for the plants if done regularly but a very poor and ineffective method of providing water for them.

The only role there is for "misting" in gardening is that it is used now and then when growing very young seedlings indoors until they are big enough to plant to the garden.

Other than that it plays no useful role in gardening.

Dave

I mist pretty regularly. Then again, as Nc-crn said we are in an arid climate with our fair share of heat and intense sun. Even with adequate watering the roots simply cant keep up with the rate of transpiration in our ultra-low humidity climate with the mercury pushing towards triple digits. So I have three options: let my plants fry, overwater and drown them, or set my hose sprayer to mist. Molds and such are pretty much non existent here.

The thing with misting is that you are not so much watering the plants but slowing the rate of water loss through the leaves. First off by cooling them down and secondly by raising the humidity so the water that is being lost through the leaves cant evaporate as quickly.

So as it is with most things it comes down to your specific situation whether its right for you to mist or not.

Zach - I can see how it might be of some benefit in exceptionally dry climates (low humidity and high temps) but from what I can find it isn't a common practice even in desert climates. So the benefits are questionable IMO.

Transpiration is a normal process for plant growth and for most of us (who don't live in exceptionally dry climates) the risk to the plants from disease far outweigh any misting benefits.

We have no way of knowing where the OP resides as for some reason they never include that info in any of their posts despite requests to do so. So we can only go by the odds. And the odds are that misting the plants is not beneficial and potentially harmful.

Dave

"We have no way of knowing where the OP resides as for some reason they never include that info in any of their posts despite requests to do so."

They never seem to reply to follow-up questions either.

Right you are Dave, as I said, every situation is different and it's up to the individual to determine what is right. In my case, I find it helpful, in others, it can be harmful. I don't prescribe to a one size fits all approach and never will.

Course, based on yours and Lori 's comments, the author of the question seems to not care one way or the other so, either way, oh well.