Stevia (stevia rebaudiana) is a new world herb that you might have only recently heard of. Stevia leaves – while having zero calories – are claimed to be 30 times sweeter than sugar, and in fact one of the common names is “candy leaf” – the extract is supposedly 300 times sweeter than sugar! Stevia is also reputed to have several health benefits including the prevention of tooth decay and diabetes. I don’t know about that, but I would guess that using less sugar probably would have those effects.
Is the idea of growing your own natural organic zero calorie sweetener intriguing to you?
These Stevia plants are 3 weeks old.
I’m growing stevia for the first time this year from Burpee brand seeds that I bought at a local home improvement center. I had heard that stevia was very hard to start from seeds, but I got about 50% germination rate by using bottom heat, keeping them very warm, continuously damp, and supplying 17 hours / day of florescent light. After 3 weeks I have 6 healthy looking (if a bit slow growing) plants from the dozen or so seeds that came in the pack. Since I have so few I’m being extra careful with them right now, and making sure that they stay above 50 degrees at all times.
I haven’t really found very much culture information about stevia yet other than that they don’t tolerate cold temperatures, and are a bit hard to start from seed, but easy to start from cuttings, and have few if any insect pests. I also heard from a fellow in Australia that they grow almost as weeds there because they self seed. He said that among other uses they put the raw leaves in salads. I have in mind to try it in some herbal tea mixes, and perhaps brewing a tea with it and using it as a condiment. I also hope to save my own seeds and perhaps over winter a plant or two next year. Maybe I’ll sell a few starts at the farmers market if all goes well.
Until very recently it was not legal to even refer to stevia as a sweetener in the United States despite it’s very long record of benign use in other countries around the world. Stevia could only be marketed as a dietary supplement in the U.S. - But, now that the sweetener industry is ready to roll out their own stevia products that law has been changed. Guess who lobbied the FDA to keep it illegal as a sweetener all those years?
Anyway, you might want to consider trying to grow stevia in your garden this year – if you do, let me know how it goes.
Happy Gardening
More information about Stevia
As my wife & I are herby folk we were fortunate enough to have discovered stevia a few years ago. we had it planted along a walk way with other culinary and medicinal herbs. It is fun to pick a leaf and feed to company just to see the look on their faces and help introduce them to the wonderful world of herbs.discovered your site when hoop house article was published and have enjoyed it ever since. keep up the good work. Gib Hayes aka rockyplants.
Thanks Gib. Where do you live? If you don’t mind tell a bit about how you propagate and care for your stevia.
Hi David, we live in Eugene, Oreg and as we sell[and buy] in our local [lane county farmers market] we purchased our starts here. This year we will try to get some plugs to finish and sell, as we didn’t start any ourselves. we sell mostly rock garden and pre bonsai/bonsai plants, planters[volcanic rock] and plantings. We also use and enjoy a hoop house that is similar to yours that came to be after much trial,error and failures. Can’t remember if stevia is annual or tender perennial, but haven’t wintered any over yet.
It’s a tender perennial. Sounds like a nice business you have there.
P.S. Have seen processed stevia in local natural food stores for a few years now. Am glad main stream is finally becoming aware of this great SAFE SWEETENER.
Actually it wasn’t LEGAL to market stevia as a sweetener until this year. It was implied that it was dangerous in several ways – it appears that implication was a big fat lie designed to protect corporate interests in the sweetener industry.
Great! i found out about Stevia about a month ago and i’m struggling to find some seeds or a plant!this almost sounds like a revolution for all the sweet tooth ……….
My experience so far is that it is a rather slow growing plant. Now that our weather has (probably) settled down into hot days and warm nights it might take off, but the plants that I started months ago (in Feb I think) are only about a foot tall right now – May 26.
However it is a perennial so if you find some seeds and get a plant started – even this late – you can bring it inside in the fall.
There is something else that you should know – stevia has a slightly bitter almost licorice taste, and although it is very sweet I don’t know where the “300 times sweeter than sugar” slogan comes from.
Good luck.
Hello David:
Found your site today and just love it. hoping to one day have a hoop house. Just started sq ft gardening this year. First time for vegs but grew flowers before. I live in zone 5 in On Canada and over wintered a stevia plant in our basement last winter. It was about 55 degrees there. I didn’t cut it down just had my daughter water it once a week, (we went to Texas for 3 months) while we were gone. It became very straggly but I cut it back and prayed. It grew back from a very woody stem and is doing great. I tried to root the cuttings from it this spring but they didn’t take. I imagine it would over winter in your hoop house very nicely.
Deb
Where can I buy a stevia plant in south Florida?
I’m all the way over in Australia.
I picked up a stevia seeding at the local market last spring. It grew rapidly (we have v.warm weather) and has gone to seed – I didnt get round to catching any seed – so here’s hoping i get some self seeding plants come up.
Apparently Stevia is used extensively in Japan as their sweetner in foods and have done so for quite some time!
I live in the Deep South and have been growing a few stevia plants for several years. If you let your plants go to seed you will get a few new plants to come up in the spring. Keep an eye out because they resemble several weeds, if in doubt pick a leaf, crush and smell the stevia plant has a very distinct smell. Keep your plants picked and they will get bushier as all herbs do.
Am still looking for a place to buy the plant! Have queried a couple of nurseries and have of yet received no replies
If anyone knows of a nursery that will ship the whole plant, please let me know. Thanks!
Jo, Try this site, they have stevia plants for sale fall 2009: http://www.thegrowers-exchange.com or just google ’stevia plants’
Viki! Thank you so much! I will try them.
The plants that I grew this year produced many seeds right before frost. I haven’t done a germination test yet, but if it comes out positive I will probably make them available in a few weeks for some kind of seed exchange.