Potatoes
The potato (plural form: potatoes) (Solanum tuberosum) is a perennial plant of the Solanaceae, or nightshade, family, grown for its starchy tuber. The "original" potato originates from planet Earth. However, several other plants resembling a lot of the Earthern potato have been discovered on thousands of planets in the galaxy.
This has led some to a believe that potatoes are actually ancient sentient beings that possessed space-faring capability. Sometime, maybe even before the First ones, the potatoes wandered the galaxy. Later on spreading themselves all over the galaxy, watching the younger races.
Cult of the Potato
This has also lead to the formation of the "Cult of the Great Potato". They believe potatoes to be the superior species and thus worship them. Because of this potatoes and all the plants resembling them are no longer eaten in several colony worlds in the Gigerdi Alliance and United Commonwealth of Planets. This cult is a multi-racial, containing Gigerdians, Humans, Folans, Vemrers, Hemmoians, Bacterians and other races as well. No one actually knows how large the cult is, but some believe it to range in billions of members. In some colony worlds the cult even controls the entire colony and are even feared. Although it hasn't shown to have any aggressive tendencies except if someone has done something bad towards potatoes. Recently a schism has emerged among the ranks of the Potato Cult however, as they cannot seem to reach a final conclusion as to whether the plant should be known as a "pot-tah-to" or a "po-tay-to".
Uses
As the potato plant itself is poisonous it is believed that this is a defensive mechanism that prevents them to be eaten, as the tubers are merely seeds.
Fermented potatoes are used to create distilled alcoholic beverages, such as vodka, by Humans and Bacterians.
