Wild lettuce has been shown to soothe the mind and body.

Wild lettuce contains bitter lactones which give it its flavor and medicinal properties, but in an infusion the flavor is mild and more akin to green tea. The lactones responsible for its properties can be found throughout the plant. In fact there are more sesquiterpene lactones in the stems than the leaves. Our wild lettuce tea is made from the whole plant.

Wild lettuce is not the same as garden lettuce.

Garden lettuce is Lactuca sativa. Our lettuce is a cousin of L. sativa. The useful wild varieties of wild lettuce are L. virosa and L. serriola. They contain much higher concentrations of the medicinal alkaloids. Virosa is typically a larger plant than serriola and produces more of the milk when harvested by hand. Lactuca gets its name from latin, on account of the milky sap. Both the ancient Greeks and Romans referred to the plant as opium lettuce.

How to make wild lettuce tea?

You can use wild lettuce like any other herbal tea infusion. Simply start with a tablespoon and let it steep in hot water for 5 minutes. Never use boiling water as it can damage the medicinal qualities. You can make your infusion as strong or mild as you prefer.