The stipe is oval in crossection, and does not snap easily when bent; in Laminaria hyperborea the plants are lighter in colour, the stipe is generally longer, thicker, circular in crossection, and snaps easily when bent, and the holdfast is conical. In Saccharina latissima (formerly Laminaria saccharina) the blade is undivided and has regular, small depressions known as bullations.