My Library

significant enough to take back to the heart of Somewhere. The problem was twofold. The life period was too short and the crop units themselves were too minute. This brought about limits in quality and quantity, as the crop had no time to generate Loosh in such close tolerances. Moreover, the Loosh could be harvested only at the moment of termination of the life span, not one moment before. His Second Crop was no better, if as good. He changed the environment to another part of the Garden, where the density was gaseous rather than liquid and the higher-density chemicals formed a solid base and thus were still available. He planted numberless units in many varieties in a new form, with a great increase in size, some many thousands of times larger and more complex than the simple unicellular First Crop. He reversed the carbon-oxygen cycle. Yet all had a basic uniformity. Like the First Crop, they would reseed at regular intervals and terminate their life spans automatically. To avoid the uneven distribution of chemicals and radiation which had been prevalent in the First Crop, he immobilized the Second Crop. Each was designed to stay principally in its own section of the Garden. To this end, each was given firm tendrils which burrowed deep in the more dense chemical matter. Attached to this was a stem or trunk which helped elevate the upper portion upward for its share of needed radiation. The upper portion, broad, thin, and somewhat fragile, was designed as a transducer of carbon-oxygen compounds to and from the crop unit. As an added thought, brilliant color radiators accompanied by small particle generators were mounted on each unit, usually near the top and symmetrically centered. He set up circulating patterns in the gaseous envelope around the crop, principally to aid in the reseeding process. Later, he discovered that the same turbulent effect served as a means of harvesting the Loosh. If the turbulence were violent enough, the Crop would be blown down, the life span terminated, and the Loosh would discharge. This was especially useful when an immediate Loosh supply was desired at a particular point rather than at Harvest Time. Despite all of this, the Second Crop was most unsatisfactory. While it was true that a much greater quantity was attained, the unrefined