Low concentration of tea (Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze) was shown to inhibit the growth of the toxic cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa. The inhibition efficiency was 40 % at 0.1 g dry tea/L and 90 % at 0.2 g/L after a 12-day culture. All varieties of tea used in the test could inhibit Microcystis growth, in which the inhibitory effect of green tea was greater than that of black tea. Antialgal allelochemicals were isolated from tea by solvent extraction, gel-chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography. Two algal-inhibition compounds were identified by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry as epigallocatechin-3-gallate, epicatechin-3-gallate respectively. These are the main polyphenols in tea that have inhibitory effects on the growth of cyanobacteria. The combined effect of these polyphenols makes tea a promising source of algicide to inhibit the growth of algal blooms.