[VIPS] Ideotype question

['Toby' H D Bradshaw]

1) Is there a way for your models to maximize net photosynthesis at
        the canopy level, instead of light interception, by tailoring
        leaf orientation to capture only the amount of light necessary
        to saturate photosynthesis, and letting the rest through to
        the leaves lower in the crown?  I realize that this would
        take some tinkering since you'd be trying to optimize over
        days and seasons when the angle/intensity of the sun is
        also changing, but you seem to be able to do this for
        light interception already.

2) Would it make sense to even try to optimize photosynthesis
        rather than just light interception?

3) Don tells me that a generalized leaf ideotype would have
        more vertically-oriented leaves in the upper crown
        (to let "excess" light penetrate into the lower
        crown), but more horizontal leaves in the lower
        crown to capture increasingly attenuated light.
        In "real life" do you see variation of leaf orientation
        in different positions within the crown?  That is, can
        we expect to have genetic variation for differences
        in leaf orientation among crown positions?

-Toby Bradshaw
toby at u.washington.edu