anyone grow stevia

[pinetree]

Our nursery has Stevia or Sweet Stevia, as a new herb. Has anyone tried growing this?

It says you can use it fresh, dried or ground.
I thought it might be nice to throw in a leaf into ice tea, or dry it and use it in hot tea in the winter.

I thought I saw somewhere here that it is hard to grow. Also do you take it indoors during the winter?

[HappyMama]

I grow stevia in my herb garden every year. It grows abundant and strong for me , it has not been hard for me to grow at all. I use it fresh and dry it as well . It is very very strong and sweet flavored. I have grown a little pot of it in the kitchen , though i get so much outside during the summer .

[craftypam]

Hi happymama

tried to pm you about seed co but your box is full. They are charging extra money that you can have taken off; wanted to let you know. Thanks for the info about stevia; I just bought seeds 2 days ago.

[HappyMama]

Hi happymama

tried to pm you about seed co but your box is full. They are charging extra money that you can have taken off; wanted to let you know. Thanks for the info about stevia; I just bought seeds 2 days ago.

Thank you so much for the information. Cleared my box as well thanks!!

[KeithBC]

I haven't grown it recently, but a few years ago, I did grow some. If I can grow it, it can't be that hard to grow! You might find that one leaf is too much for a cup of tea. It is really, really sweet.

Nowadays, I use commercial powdered stevia extract. I have a jar of it that will probably last for the rest of my life. The extract is even stronger than the ground leaves. I use about 1/100th of a teaspoon in a cup of tea.

[craftypam]

HOW do you measure 1/100 of a tsp? Just had to ask!!! LOL
Really just thanks for info; as I said I just bought seeds.

[pinetree]

It says here nit6 is an annual, maybe I would only have to grow it one year if its that stong.

Can you cook using this? guess I need to do some research.

[HappyMama]

It says here nit6 is an annual, maybe I would only have to grow it one year if its that stong.

Can you cook using this? guess I need to do some research.

Yes mine is an annual as well, but well worth it for me to plant every year.

Here is a conversion and cooking site about Stevia. Hope this helps.

http://www.stevia.com/Stevia_Recipes.aspx?RCId=1

[pinetree]

Thanks HappyMama, the site says its under contruction, so I bookmarked it and will check it out later.

[zakity]

I grow mine in a pot. It isn't supposed to grow here well. I set it outside in the summer and brought it in this winter. The main plant died off, but I have new little plants growing.

[HappyMama]

Thanks HappyMama, the site says its under contruction, so I bookmarked it and will check it out later.

Yes sorry there was a conversion chart , but check out the new one I put has recipes for you.

[KeithBC]

HOW do you measure 1/100 of a tsp? Just had to ask!!! LOL

LOL Technically it would be called a pinch. I just wanted to give an estimate of how small a pinch it was. Pretty small!

[pinetree]

Thanks for the new site! Theres alot of recipies I would like to try.

I am going to try and grow this, I think I will put it in a pot so I can bring it in this winter.

[Josephhgoins]

I great it last year in a pot on the patio. It became almost evasive. As long as you water it (I did not fertilizer) it will produce in loads for you. I tried cutting it back and it cause a growth explosion. I finally just stopped watering it and let it die.

for me it wasn't the most useful herb. This year I am doing vegetables and the only herbs will be Sage and Rosemary.

Good luck!

[craftypam]

What do you use sage and rosemary for? I have one recipe that I use rosemary, lasagna. I find that the spices wind up flowering before I get to use them much. I need to dry them.