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Sea Lettuce - Ulva lactuca Sea lettuce is a thin, flat, GREEN algae that grows from a discoid holdfast on rocks or on other algae. The margin is ruffled and often torn. It can reach 18 cm (7 in) long and up to 30 cm (12 in) across. The membrane is only two cells thick, is soft and translucent.  This piece of sea lettuce was white from being bleached by the sun.<br />
<br />
 Ulva lactuca is edible, but has a strong flavor that can be lessened by soaking in water.<br />
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 I found this sea lettuce floating free in the low intertidal zone.  Geotagged,Sea lettuce,Spring,Ulva lactuca,United States,algae,seaweed,white seaweed Click/tap to enlarge

Sea Lettuce - Ulva lactuca

Sea lettuce is a thin, flat, GREEN algae that grows from a discoid holdfast on rocks or on other algae. The margin is ruffled and often torn. It can reach 18 cm (7 in) long and up to 30 cm (12 in) across. The membrane is only two cells thick, is soft and translucent. This piece of sea lettuce was white from being bleached by the sun.

Ulva lactuca is edible, but has a strong flavor that can be lessened by soaking in water.

I found this sea lettuce floating free in the low intertidal zone.

    comments (5)

  1. Wonderful! Have you eaten any before? Posted 7 years ago
    1. Yes! It is so versatile and FULL of nutrients. There are some seaweeds that I do not like at all because of the strong flavor, but this one isn't bad - tastes kind of like spinach, but saltier. Comparable texture to spinach as well. The strong flavor can be lessened by rinsing or soaking in water for a couple hours. It's especially good toasted with sesame oil, or used in soups. People also eat in salad, but the texture is way too gross for me to eat it that way. Posted 7 years ago
      1. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention that you can use sea lettuce on cuts and burns...You just rub it on. It has a lot of iodine in it, so it acts as an astringent.

        ...Not that you'll find much Ulva lactuca in rural Georgia though... ;P
        Posted 7 years ago
        1. Yummy!

          No. Very doubtful :P Maybe if I visited Georgia's barrier islands (on my bucket list)!
          Posted 7 years ago
          1. Ooh, yes! Imagine the things you could find there! Posted 7 years ago

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"Ulva lactuca", also known by the common name sea lettuce, is an edible green alga in the family Ulvaceae. It is the type species of the genus "Ulva".

Similar species: Ulvales
Species identified by Christine Young
View Christine Young's profile

By Christine Young

All rights reserved
Uploaded Jun 26, 2018. Captured Jun 18, 2018 08:21 in 1 ME-99, Kennebunk, ME 04043, USA.
  • Canon EOS 80D
  • f/4.5
  • 1/332s
  • ISO100
  • 100mm