Moving beyond the incorrect but useful paradigm: reevaluating big-leaf and multilayer plant canopies to model biosphere-atmosphere fluxes – a review

•Single-layer canopy parameterizations in land surface models may be insufficient.•Simulations with a one-layer canopy are degraded compared to a multilayer model.•Results differ because of within-canopy temperature and wind speed profiles.•Single-layer canopies cannot capture gradients of leaf water potential.•Additional resolution over 5–10 layers gives little change in model performance.