Stevia

I have ordered several stevia plants for myself, being intrigued by the idea of sugar-free sweetening. I have MS and cannot use Equal or Splenda as overuse of such processed sweetners can cause mimicry of MS symptoms and exacerbation of existing symptoms in true MS (Okay, medical lesson over...)

So, has anyone every grown it, used it, heard of possible problems in its consumption, etc.

I have one tiny seedling now, so I'm pretty new to growing Stevia.... no harvest yet! LOL I think it has 6 leaves.

I've heard fresh leaves are very good in tea (iced or hot), but that the flavor may be a little "green" for some uses in terms of replacing sugar in recipes. Did you try searching the Recipes forum?

Hopefully somebody will be able to tell us more....

I came across that plant on seedrack and have been thinking of getting some
seeds and trying it out ..

I will need some info also on it . how to use it in cooking and that stuff.
Also if a extraction can be done , steam distillation so
you could end up with a sugar (sweet) water or somthing.

I've got some growing in my yard. I like to keep it around; it's a very low-maintenance plant.

For a while there, I would simply cut it back and dry the cuttings, then crush to powder with a mortar and pestle. (If you have a coffee or herb grinder, that would work also.) Slip a pinch in my coffee and reduce my refined sugar intake! Sometimes I just pinch off a leaf or two and toss it into whatever I want to sweeten (best method for herbal tea).

I just leave the plant in a pot for 10 months out of the year and then move it into my greenhouse for the two months where freeze is possible here. I have no idea -- it could be entirely freeze-hardy. I'd suggest that, in your zone, you could grow these in a sunny window in containers year round. I wouldn't think you'd need much more than one or two plants, unless you do a lot of baking. You use tiny amounts at a time.

You can also pick up already refined stevia in your health food store. The only difference between the plant you grown and the bottle you buy, is the powder from the health food store is white. I'm not sure how they get it like that. The powder I grew, dried and made was green.

And yes, it is something like 200% sweeter than regular sugar or Splenda. A little dab will do ya and that's no joke. I used the trial-and-error method of determining how much to use and I have not tried baked goods. Not sure if it will carmelize and brown baked goods like regular sugar.

Do you have more specific questions?

I picked me up a plant this past weekend and just planted it in a container with other herbs yesterday. I'm hoping it grows good.

Anyone have ideas for how many leaves for like a 2qt container of fresh brewed tea? I'd like to try it out and see what it tastes like. My little plant has a ton of leaves and its probably a good 8 inchs tall I would say right now. Do you put the leaves in the tea when its still hot or when its cold or does it matter? I figure when its hot would get more out of it. And do you just drop the leaves in or crush them or what?

Hot water will help leech the essential oils out of the plant, which are crazy-sweet, but it doesn't matter. I would recommend maybe 1-2 smallish leaves, cut 'em up with scissors so they're in little bits. (That also helps get the oils out.) If it's not sweet enough, add one small leaf at a time. Do not start with a huge handful!

Seriously, I've used 1/8 teaspoon of crushed dried leaves in my coffee and OVERsweetened it. 'Course I'm not one of you crazy native Southerners who likes everything ultrasweet and deep fried. ;>) Still, start with just a little and add to taste, because if you put in too much, you can't unsweeten.

I've grown it outside and it's come back for going on 3, or 4? years now. I mulch it a bit and it sends up new growth in the late Spring.

I also grow it in pots for my market sales; it grows very well in pots! Use a container two gallons in size or more for the biggest plant growth.

I've put a leaf in my coffee before...depending on which leaf you pick seems to determine the sweetness; in the early part of the year the new leaves don't seem to be very sweet but once they get some good growth they seem to get sweeter. (Most likely due to the photosysthesis/sun and having the abilitly to "make" sugars, eh?)

That's exactly right, horseshoe: The result of photosynthesis is C6 H12 O6 -- the chemical formula for glucose. (And it's why veggies are termed, "carbs.")

Thanks, Dogzilla~! Carbon, Hydrogen, Oxygen, each at various "strengths", eh?

(Off topic question...when sweet corn is first picked it has a high content of sugar. It then loses that sugar and "turns to starch" and loses its sweetness. What is it considered at that point? In other words, what does the glucose turn to? Or is "starch" the answer to my own question?)

We may be getting beyond my rudimentary (high school) understanding of chemistry, but I believe starch turns to sugar -- it's the same molecules, only starches are longer chains of them. Because, as you eat starches (white bread, pasta, potatoes, etc.) your body breaks them down into sugars (anything ending in "-ose"). And if we don't burn off, or use the sugars, they are stored in the body as fat. And that's why the low-carb diets restrict refined carbs.

So I'm not sure about what happens to the sweet corn to make it become less sweet with age. Maybe, because starches and sugars are related, the process works both ways, but I sincerely doubt that. I think some other chemical process happens after picking, but we'll need a corn farmer or chemist or someone in here to say for sure.

Paging a chemistry major! Do we have any chemistry majors here?

I have some growing in the greenhouse, it went dormant on me for some reason, nothing there, but the root mass, I hope I haven't lost it. I eat the leaves LOL, their really sweet. Iknow it doesn't over winter outside,

This is a really neat plant to have if your in to herbs or into natural sweeteners.

kathy

This is all great info, thanks!

BUT... what about side effects? Any downsides to using it? I would think not, since so little is used...

Thanks for the info everyone...I'll have to brew some tea up today and try it out...my girlfriend was born here in FL and loves sweet tea. We'll see how close I can get it to the "sugared" tea :)

I'm not aware of any side effects or downsides to using stevia, unlike a lot of other herbs. Think of it like the culinary herbs: can you think of any downsides to using basil, or pineapple mint? I can't.

(Unless you don't like those flavors...)

jasonc: please come back and let us know how it went. I think you can go way beyond sweet tea quickly...

Will do! I think I'll go make some Red Rose tea up right now just to try it out. Then I gotta do alot of landscaping :) We moved into a brand new house in December and finally I'm adding some of my own landscaping...

I know the feeling. I bought a house almost two years ago (already?) and I'm still working on landscaping what was nearly a quarter acre of dirt and fallen leaves. Not a plant in the back yard except for two gorgeous pindo palms.

I think the only down side of it is that its banned thanks to the
the sugar growers.

text taken from seedrack.com ...
Stevia is a remarkable plant that is used in many parts of the world as a natural herbal sweetener. In Japan, for example, about 40% of the sweetener market is stevia-based. Stevia leaves are 30 times sweeter than sugar but contain virtually no calories. It is native to South America, where its use as a sweetener has been known for at least 1,500 years. In the U.S., due to pressure from the powerful sugar lobby, Stevia is regulated by the FDA and may be offered only as a dietary supplement (or skin care product) but not as a food additive or sweetener. Stevia is a tender, perennial herb that is usually grown as an annual but may be overwintered indoors. Full sun to part shade, grows to a height of about 30 inches.

Wow! Good information Sparky! Thanks.

That's great information! I am looking forward to getting my plants!

I used about 6 leaves in a thing of tea with no sweet flavor :( Unless I did something wrong or maybe the leaves weren't old enough to have the really sweet taste yet...I'll try it in a month or so after it gets bigger and see...

Did you gnaw on one of the leaves before you put in the tea (just to make sure the leaves themselves were sweet)? And, were the leaves whole, or did you cut 'em up?

BTW, I was perusing my bookmarks (trying to kill some time before a meeting) and found this web site, totally dedicated to growing and using stevia.

http://www.stevia.net/growingstevia.htm

I forgot to reply :) Someone called the other day when I was going to heheh...anyways...I didn't try any of them...I guess I should of done that. I know it gave the tea some kind of taste cause it was a little bit different that usual....the plant might not be old enough yet to have really good sweetening yet....that least that is my guess...I'll check that site out though...

I acquired some seeds a short time ago, (Thank you John316!) & have heard that sowing them can be difficult. I sowed them in regular potting soil, just barely covered with soil. I wasn't certain if they needed sunlight to germinate. By day 3, about 7 were already up. I think the sun may be the key to germinating the seeds. I was also given a bag of dried leaves & they are almost syrupy sweet! I bought a tea brewing ball to steep the Stevia when making tea.

The plant has been allowed and forbidden to sale many times in the US, though it is currently used in Europe...Here's an interesting article about stevia:
http://www.vegsource.com/davis/sweeteners.htm

I got my plants this week (yeah, Companion Plants!) and chewed a larger leaf. WOW! Syrupy sweet is a great description!

I have about a dozen babies - just tiny two leaved plants, but they are taking their time growing on. I know they like a warm climate, so they get heat at night & sun during the day. I am so excited about this plant!

Let us know how it goes BassetMom!

I bought a second plant this year. I thought the one I had in the greenhouse had croaked. Turns out, these are hardy little buggers. You can forget to water one for a few weeks and it'll come right back! LOL

Now, I have two and will never need to purchase sugar or Splenda ever again! (And THAT's probably why the plant has been a political football with the sugar industry and the FDA.)

Promote civil disobedience! Boycott the Sugar Industry! Grow Stevia!

Should I change my name to Steviaweed?

I have already used one when I steeped some peppermint for tea and it was great! It really will take some trial and error to get it just right, as it is very, very sweet.

Anyone bake with it?

steviaweed... LOL

No offense meant, of course! ;>)

I have not baked with it because it will not have the same browning properties -- it's not going to crystallize or caramelize like sugar would, so I can't see how baked goods would turn out well.

I hate to be the type to be so anti - govt or big business, but the truth is very compelling indeed! How is it that a powerful business can CONTROL something that could benefit our health? Stevia has the ability to truly enhance a diabetic's life... I am ON this bandwagon - & I hope to share plenty of the seeds or plants as I grow them! SO, THERE! (That is about as volatile as I am ever gonna get, I guess) If it helps someone else, I'll be happy too.

I want some! Do you think Maggies Herbs in St Augustine carries it?

I got mine from Companion Plants and they are the best mail order plants I've ever received (I've ordered from lots of different places).

Thanks, I'll check em out.

I should have some spare seeds if you would like to try them. It may take longer to get the large plant, but they are the cutest little sprouts!

I'm willing to divide mine, take cuttings, or even ship you my spare plant... Send me an e-mail.

In trade, I'm looking for Mexican sunflowers (tithonia? I think), clematis, anything for the shady backyard (includes the Dark Corner o' Death) and any flutterby/hummer attractors.

Holler!

P.S. Sugarweed: I'm thinking of coming to that Jacksonville roundup May 21. Should we just move to that thread and work out a trade?

Some are headed my way as we speak. I appreciate your kindness.
Each and everyone.
DZ see ya in that forum.

Well I finally got around to trying a leaf from my Stevia. I was beginning to wonder if the tag was right on the plant :) But after tying it all I can say is WOW...its nice and sweet. You could eat the leaves when you get a sweet tooth even....this is just crazy hehehe...need to get some more plants if I find them around that is for sure!

My 9yrold daughter has discovered their location in the GH. They will probably be stripped bare by the end of the week!