Whiteflower was not the only crop the Oasans cultivated. There was also a cotton-like substance called sbt, which erupted from the soil in sticky white froth that quickly hardened into a fibrous weed. It was from this weed that the Oasans’ nets, shoes and clothing were derived. Then there was bysb, a kind of moss which grew at an amazing rate, completing its metamorphosis from specks of mold to verdant fluff in a single afternoon. What was it for? He had no idea, but he learned how to harvest it. As for whiteflower, there was, he learned, a catch to its wondrous versatility: each plant had to
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Is part of USIC's plan to have him learn to cultivate and make humans self-sufficient and not dependent on Oasans?
