Crystherium

From Farscape Encyclopedia Project

The crystherium utilia is the name given to the flower strelitzia or the "bird of paradise flower" by the Scarrans. The flower is rare in the Uncharted Territories and considered a delicacy among the Scarran Empire. Consumption of the flower also has the effect of increasing the Scarran's brain capacity, allowing their ruling class to meet the same intellectual level as other advanced sentient species such as humans and Sebaceans.

Crystherium can only be grown in certain conditions, forcing the Scarrans to cultivate them in a limited number of locations. Because of this handicap, the Scarrans can only expand their power from these few locations, one of which is the hidden base Katratzi. The flowers are heavily guarded as a loss of a crop can effectively cripple the Scarrans ability to occupy and control entire regions of space. This occurs when the crew of Moya destroyed the Katratzi flower supply, setting the capability of the Scarrans to rule that region back by hundreds of cycles.

After the destruction of Katratzi, the Scarrans make for the wormhole that leads to Earth, hoping to conquer the planet after John Crichton accidentally informed them of its sizeable supply of the flower. Crichton with the help of Aeryn and Pilot manages to collapse the wormhole before the Scarrans can reach it, cutting off another potential crystherium supply.