Laver

Laver, a name given to a number of kinds of seaweed, which are used as food, especially Porphyra vulgaris and P. laciniata, of the sub-group Florideæ, or red seaweeds (Algæ). These plants grow on rocks and stones in the sea, and are not unfrequent on the British shores. They consist of a very thin, flat, purple frond, which is not gelatinous. The frond of P. vulgaris is wavy and undivided, that of P. laciniata (sometimes called Sloke) is deeply cleft, and has the segments lobed and cut at the edges. Laver is sometimes stewed and brought to table; also pickled and eaten with pepper, vinegar, and oil, or with lemon-juice. It is regarded as useful in scrofulous affections and glandular tumours, a property which it probably owes to the iodine which it contains. Porphyra is the 'red laver' of commerce. The name of Green Laver is given to Ulva lutissima, of the sub-group Chlorophyceæ, or green algæ. It is a common seaweed of the British shores, the frond of which is green, membranous, broad, flat, wavy, and sometimes inflated. It is bitterish, but is often used in the same way as the true laver, and possesses similar properties.