Stevia care and cultivation at home. Stevia - Reproduction, planting, care. Transplanting stevia from open ground

The article will tell you how to purchase stevia seeds and properly grow it at home or in the ground.

Stevia is a perennial plant with a number of beneficial properties and a pleasant sweetish taste. It can be grown not only on the plot, but also on the windowsill in the apartment. To do this, you need to buy seeds, a selection of which is available in the Aliexpress online store.

What you can buy in Aliexpress:

When to plant stevia on the windowsill at home?

Stevia is propagated by seeds, but before you start growing it on your windowsill, you should know that only 7% of the crop germinates. In order for the grass to grow well, you should follow all the rules for caring for stevia.

First of all, prepare the soil. Light sandy but fertile soil suits the grass. You can buy ready-made soil collection in the store, or you can do it yourself. To do this, collect soil from different parts of the garden and add sand.

It is important that the soil has a neutral reaction, since the plant is not accepted in acidic soil. To plant seeds on a windowsill, you should select a suitable container in advance, up to 5 liters deep.

IMPORTANT: If you are planting cuttings (seedlings) rather than seeds, each sprout should be deepened into a separately dug hole.

If you grow stevia on a window or on a balcony, you should choose a place where there is the most sun, but not direct rays. Excessive scorching sun rays can be detrimental to her. It is also necessary to know that stevia loves humid air and does not survive dry air well.

To grow crops, the container is often covered with polyethylene to form a kind of greenhouse. When the sprouts produce leaves, this polyethylene should be periodically removed for several hours a day, increasing this period each time.

Adult stevia should be cared for in the same way as other house plants:

• Loosen the ground
• Water as the soil dries out
• Moisten with a spray bottle

IMPORTANT: The soil should be loosened extremely carefully because root system Stevia is very delicate and easy to damage. Also know that the roots are not deep.

Stevia loves not only moisture, but also warmth. The ideal temperature for it is 21-23 degrees, and humidity 75-80%. If the conditions are a little worse, then the development of stevia will be slower. Spraying is best done twice a day: morning and evening. Every decade the plant should be fed with organic all-purpose fertilizer.

If the soil is covered with a white coating, these are molds. Their presence is very unfavorable for stevia. In this case, the soil should be watered with a weak solution of potassium permanganate. In order for the plant to grow leaves, it should be pinched off (i.e. shortened) every two months. Then the bush will be lush and the leaves will be large.

How to sow stevia for seedlings?

Seedlings from stevia seeds should be grown correctly:

• Select stevia seeds; those that are not empty should be soaked in warm water for a while and then dried a little.
• After drying, the seeds should be evenly distributed over the previously prepared soil.

IMPORTANT: It is strictly forbidden to press the seeds into the ground; they should only be lightly and carefully scattered. It is advisable to cover the container with soil and seeds with glass or polyethylene. The first shoots can be noticed, if all conditions are favorable, within a week.

Caring for stevia seedlings at home

You can keep stevia on a windowsill or loggia (glazed, warm balcony) until approximately mid-October, depending on weather conditions. It is important that the air temperature is not below 10 degrees. Also know that stevia should not be allowed to bloom at this time of year.

IMPORTANT: If you planted a plant in the spring and see it constantly sick, this is quite normal for stevia, but it’s bad if it hasn’t stopped hurting in August.

Seedlings should grow in moist soil with a high sand content. The cuttings will do well at home if they are sufficiently rooted. If you have a plot, then seedlings should be planted in the ground around the end of May, or at the beginning of June.

How to care for seedlings:

• Cover the plant at night if the room is cold or at risk of frost.
• Loosen the soil less
• Moisten the soil more
• Moisten the plant's foliage
• Do not allow the tops of the stevia and the axils where the leaves grow to dry out.
• Do not moisten the soil too much to prevent the seedlings from rotting.
• Feed the plant once every two weeks (use universal mineral fertilizer).
• The seedlings should not be higher than 75-80 cm; if they grow, cut off the top.

IMPORTANT: You can pick and use stevia leaves for your needs when the plant reaches a height of more than 30 cm.

Stevia: growing in open ground

How to plant seedlings in the ground:

• Seedlings should be planted from a pot very carefully so as not to damage the root system, along with the soil.
• You should make holes in the ground in advance and plant seedlings in them.
• Lightly water the seedlings in the soil and tamp down the soil a little.
• Spray the plant with a spray bottle
• Sprinkle mulch on top of the soil around the cuttings; it will prevent the stevia roots from drying out.
• Each cutting should be planted fairly far apart from each other (approximately 40 cm).
• There should also be a distance of approximately 50 cm between the rows of cuttings.

Stevia diseases: description and treatment

Interestingly, stevia is a unique plant that is very rarely damaged by pests. Most often, stevia suffers from “black leg”, which appears in young cuttings. This can only be avoided by completely adjusting the watering and lighting modes.

IMPORTANT: Before planting the cuttings in the ground, it is advisable to spill the soil with a weak solution of potassium permanganate - this will eliminate the fungus. Instead of potassium permanganate, you can also use previkur.

Video: “Stevia - growing and planting”

Which was brought to Russia from South America. This crop is also called honey grass, and this is justified, because stevia leaves are used as a natural sugar substitute. This unremarkable crop is especially valued in folk medicine; it can be grown both at home and in the garden.

Stevia. Growing and reproduction. Healing properties

The leaves of the plant contain quite a lot of useful substances. For example, tea brewed from them, with long-term use, can boost and strengthen the immune system. In addition, stevia is natural (it is 200 times sweeter than saccharin).

Using the plant for cosmetic purposes also has a positive effect. Prepared masks and decoctions make the skin smoother and more elastic, and also even out the complexion.

Stevia: cultivation, care, planting

Plant seeds are sown in late January or early February. This applies to seedlings that will subsequently be placed in the ground. It is advisable to add fertilizer to the prepared soil, and sow the seeds themselves only on the surface of the ground, without sprinkling them. Next, this place must be covered with film or glass. When the shoots appear, you need to carefully ensure that the condensation accumulating on the surface of the shelter does not flood the sprouts that have begun to form.

Stevia, the cultivation and care of which does not require the creation of any special conditions, takes root quite easily in our climate zone. The most important thing is that planting in the ground should be carried out only after the morning frosts have ended. Initially, seedlings can be placed in a greenhouse or greenhouse.

It is better to plant young plants in the evening or in cloudy weather. After this, each of them must be watered abundantly. It is better to choose a place for planting that is sunny, but as protected from the wind as possible; drafts have a detrimental effect on the growth of a plant such as stevia. Growing this crop in the garden requires mandatory fertilizing. Typically, a universal mineral fertilizer is used, which is suitable for vegetable or berry crops.

In the first year after planting, you should not expect intensive growth from the plant. For the winter it is dug up and stored in basement. The leaves of the plant are collected at the beginning of flowering; the stems are cut about 6 cm from the ground.

Growing stevia at home is easy to do all year round. The only difficulty you may encounter is the lack of lighting in winter. Under such conditions, the foliage of the plant becomes small and the stems become very elongated. This problem can be easily solved by providing the crop with additional lighting. Stevia, which is grown indoors, must be provided with sufficient watering. And it is better to place the pot with it in a warm and bright place. In addition, approximately 4 months after planting, the plant should be pruned to obtain more side shoots and leaves. Next, the bush is pruned every six months.

The stevia plant was first noticed by the Swiss botanist M. Bertoni in late XIX century. He learned about the unique properties of the “sweet, honey herb” from the Paraguayan Guarani Indians, who sweetened mate tea with stevia leaves, used it as a delicacy and as an additive that improves the taste of medicines.

Nowadays in food industry stevia is used as sweetener, sweetener. Its fresh leaves are 10-15 times sweeter than sucrose. Unlike aspartame, stevia sweeteners are heat-resistant (retain their properties at temperatures up to +200 ° C) and are stable in an acidic environment.

Composition of the stevia plant

Stevia Rebauda (Stivia rcbaudiana) contains many biologically active substances: carotenoids, mineral salts (potassium, calcium, magnesium, iron), tannins, essential oils, amino acids. Stevia is valued for the sweet organic substances (steviol glycosides) contained in the leaves. In nature, their content varies from 3 to 9%, and in some varieties – from 15 to 20%. Some plants have an exceptionally sweet taste, others are less sweet, and others are even bitter. This is due to the content and mutual ratio of bitter and sweet glycosides in stevia.

The most common components found in stevia leaves are stevioside (5-10%) and rebaudioside A (2-4%). Stevioside sweeter than sugar 110-270 times, and rebaudioside A 150-320 times. It is believed that the higher the rebaudioside A/stevioside ratio, the higher the quality of the stevia variety. Breeders from different countries (mainly China, Japan, Korea and Russia) have developed varieties with high content steviolglycosides. In some varieties their concentration reaches 20.5% (China), and the ratio of rebaudioside A to stevioside can even be 9:1 (Japan).

How to grow stevia

This perennial herbaceous plant, about 65 cm high, on fertile soils can grow up to 1.8 m. Flowering occurs when the length of daylight hours decreases. It is advisable to choose a sunny place for planting: in the shade, these plants bloom and grow worse. Stevias prefer loose, well-drained soils (for example, slightly acidic loams and sandy loams). Sand and humus must be added to clay soils.

At temperatures below +20 °C and daylight hours of less than 12 hours, stevia stops growing. It cannot winter in the open ground in the Moscow region, so it is grown as an annual or as an indoor crop and brought indoors for the winter.

To do this, at the end of September - beginning of October, the plant is dug up with a clod of earth, transplanted into a pot and kept at a temperature of +8 ... + 15 ° C and high humidity.

True, in low light the shoots still stretch out greatly. In the spring, when the threat of frost has passed, the plant is planted in the garden and used as a mother plant for cuttings.

Stevia propagation

Propagation of stevia by seeds

For sowing, use a soil mixture consisting of equal parts of turf soil, humus and sand. At the end of March - beginning of April, the seeds are sown evenly, without deepening, into a well-moistened substrate. The bowl with the sowing is covered with glass or film and placed in a warm place. The soil should always remain moist. For seed germination, a temperature of +20...+25 °C and good lighting are required. After 5-7 days, most of the seeds germinate, after which the glass (film) is removed. Seedlings grow very slowly. At the age of 15-20 days, the plants, without pinching the roots, are transplanted into cups.

For good growth, seedlings need lighting, regular careful watering and a temperature of about +25 ° C.

At the age of 6-7 weeks, seedlings are planted in open ground; usually in late May - early June, when the threat of frost has passed. Planted with row spacing of 45-60 cm and a distance between plants in a row of 25-30 cm. Seed germination is often very low, less than 50% (usually due to poor execution).

The seedlings are weak - only half of what was sown survives. To produce viable seeds, flowers must be pollinated with pollen from another plant. Seeds are best stored at a temperature of 0 ° C, but after 3 years their germination rate is still halved.

Stevia cuttings

Cuttings are cut from the end of February to the end of June.

You need to cut off the upper part of the shoot with four internodes, remove the lower leaves, place the cutting in perlite or sand, in a seedling box, to a depth of 3-6 cm and cover it with a transparent cap or polyethylene.

It is necessary to maintain high humidity and periodically moisten the cuttings with a spray bottle. At a temperature of +25 ° C and high humidity, they quickly take root and are ready for planting in 2-3 weeks.

Stevia grows slowly; careful weeding is required at the beginning of growth.

It responds well to regular watering and sprinkling, especially in dry, hot weather. Once every 3-4 weeks you need to apply complex mineral fertilizers 15-20 g/sq.m. m.

Photo 2: Stevia seeds (left). Stevia seedling (right)

Collection and preparation of stevia

The procurement of raw materials is carried out in the budding phase, when the amount of steviol glycosides in the leaves is maximum.

Plants are cut at a level of 5-10 cm from the ground and then dried in the sun or in dryers. In dry and hot weather in the sun, a thin layer of cut plants dries in 9-10 hours.

Drying quickly produces better quality leaves.

If the plants are heavily crushed or dried for a long time, the quality of the raw material deteriorates due to oxidation: up to a third of steviol glycosides are lost in three days. After drying, the leaves are separated from the stems.

Beneficial properties of stevia and its use in medicine

Stevia and steviol glycosides are used to treat diabetes mellitus Type 2, obesity, hypertension and for the prevention of caries. The simplest recipe that can help with hypertension: 3 g of dry crushed stevia leaves, pour 100 ml of boiling water, cook in a water bath for 10 minutes, leave for 30 minutes, strain. Drink 100 ml 3 times a day for 3 months.

Note:

• If in the middle of summer several stems of an adult plant are bent to the ground and sprinkled with damp soil, then by autumn we will get good specimens with a developed root system.
• About a dozen varieties of stevia have been bred in Russia: Detskoselskaya, Ramonskaya Slastena. Sofia, Uslada, etc. The main work on the study of this crop is carried out by scientists from the All-Russian Research Institute of Sugar Beet and Sugar in the Voronezh Region.

Growing Stevia: Personal Experience

Sick diabetes mellitus use it as a sugar substitute

Almost everyone knows this. But the “medicinal range” of stevia is much wider. ABOUT beneficial properties Our local herbalist told me about the plants. It turns out that dried leaves and stems are effective in treating ulcers; with their help, they normalize blood pressure.

Stevia leaves contain essential oils that help relieve inflammatory processes and heal wounds.

They say that by using the plant correctly, you can even reduce the craving for tobacco and alcohol!

Stevia came to me as a small cutting. I rooted it and have been watching the plant for 2 years now, propagating it and trying to preserve it in winter.

In open ground, the bush grows quite quickly; soil with a high nitrogen content is needed. And since I use stevia for medicinal purposes, I do not add mineral fertilizers to the soil. I only use organics. At the end of May, I plant the bushes in open ground at a distance of 20 cm from each other. It takes two weeks for the plants to adapt, then (with regular watering) they begin to grow.

In freedom, they grow much more powerfully than in the house, and the leaves in the open sun store more sugars. When the buds begin to appear, I cut off the above-ground part and lay it out in a dark, well-ventilated place to dry.

After pruning, I feed the plants with infused organic matter (weeded grass and manure), which I dilute 1:10.

Wintering of the setvia

With the onset of cold weather, I dig up the bushes, plant them in containers and place them in a cool, bright place.

Sometimes, as the earthen clod dries out, I water it.

Stevia cuttings

In spring, young shoots appear. I trim them, leaving two lower buds on the stem. I put the cut parts in water for 1 hour, then plant them in light sandy soil and cover them with polyethylene.

Nadezhda TERYAEVA. Zhlobin, Gomel region.

Expert commentary

Since stevia is not officially recognized as a medicinal plant and has not yet been included in the State Pharmacopoeia of the Russian Federation, I would recommend using it very carefully. And do not use for patients with hypertension, pregnant women and children.

I haven’t come across any information anywhere about the treatment of alcohol and tobacco addiction. Considering that stevia has a blood purifying and antitoxic effect, it is logical to assume that it can help relieve hangover syndrome and improved well-being.

STEVIA: A SWEET TREAT

A lot has been said and written about stevia (sweet herb) lately. Interest in it has increased sharply after in 1990, at a world symposium in China, stevia was recognized as one of the most valuable plants that can improve health and prolong life. This herb is also known in Ukraine. Despite the exceptional heat-loving nature of stevia, some gardeners, including me, still managed to grow it on their plots.

Honey potion

Perhaps no plant in the world has experienced such vicissitudes of fate as stevia. Tear and chew for your health - this is how it has long been perceived in Paraguay, the homeland of this plant. Local residents did just that, while maintaining one of the lowest rates of diabetes in the world. The first reports of sweet grass, used by Indians to sweeten food, date back to 1887. It was in this year that South American naturalist Antonio Bertoni discovered stevia. He described, studied, classified the plant as a botanist and gave it the name Stevia Rebaudiana - in honor of Ovid Rebaudi, the scientist who first made a chemical analysis of the sweet juice of stevia. Then it was opened again, then forgotten...

After the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Japanese added a new page to stevia's track record. They hastily began to look for an adaptogen (a drug that increases the body's resistance to harmful influences) of plant origin. The choice fell on a South American plant, which they began to actively use to improve the health of the nation.

In the market of the Land of the Rising Sun, this plant began to occupy more than 80% of the world's harvest and 90% of the consumption of dry leaves. Huge funds were allocated for the cultivation and purchase of its raw materials in other countries. Until recently, stevia was known only to specialists. But after the Chernobyl tragedy, the popularity of the plant increased sharply, and the demand for medicinal raw materials from stevia increased tenfold. Scientists and doctors started talking about her, articles appeared in newspapers and magazines.

Dried stevia leaves are 30 times sweeter, and the sweetening ingredient (stevioside) is 300 times sweeter than sugar. But not only this brought the plant worldwide fame. The main advantage of stevia is that it provides energy to a person without the help of insulin, which is especially important for diabetics and those with high blood sugar levels.

In addition, the plant helps strengthen blood vessels, inhibits the growth of tumors, helps with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, and accelerates the disposal of bad cholesterol and radionuclides from the body. With constant use of an extract from dry leaves, the body rejuvenates, the skin on the face becomes smooth and elastic, and wrinkles are smoothed out. It is not difficult to prepare such a hood at home. For this, 1.5-2 tbsp. spoons of dry stevia leaf are poured with 1 glass of water, boiled for 6-8 minutes, and then left for 45 minutes.

This extract is added to tea and all dishes that traditionally use sugar.

Growing stevia is not easy. She cannot withstand the winter and dies.

This plant tolerates only light frosts. Sweet grass can be propagated by cuttings, layering, dividing the bush, or seeds. Having tried all the methods, I chose to propagate stevia by seeds. However, there are some nuances here too. Considering that stevia seeds are very small and their germination rate is low, even minor deviations from agricultural practices sharply reduce the yield of seedlings. For example, I do this. I perfectly level the moistened soil mixture, consisting of turf soil and humus in equal parts and 20-25% sand. I compact and water. Peat cannot be used, since the bacteria contained in it will lead to the death of the seedlings. I soak the seeds for 30 minutes in warm water with the addition of potassium permanganate (0.5 g per 1 liter of water), then dry them and sow them evenly on a moistened soil surface.

For better contact with the soil, I press the seeds with my palm and lightly sprinkle them with soil on top, or rather, dust them. If the seeds are completely covered with soil, they will not sprout. I water the crops, preventing the seeds from being washed away, and cover them with film. The soil under the film should always be moist. During this period, it is important to protect the crops from direct sunlight, for example, by shading them with newspapers. At this time, I place the seedling boxes in the warmest place. After 6-8 days, stevia and weed shoots appear. It is very easy to distinguish them: the weeds stretch out, the stevia does not. It is best to sow seeds on February 20-25.

After the seedlings emerge, I move the seedling box to the brightest and warmest place. The seedlings grow very slowly. During this period, it is important to spray the seedlings regularly (at least 6-8 times a day) and monitor the temperature and humidity. The plant should be under the film throughout the entire seedling period. When two or more true leaves appear, I transplant the seedlings, along with a lump of earth, into separate pots. The usual care for seedlings is watering, fertilizing.

I plant stevia in open ground in the third decade of May, when the threat of frost has passed. If there is film or agrofibre, plants can be planted two weeks earlier. In each hole I add 0.3-0.5 kg of vermicompost or humus and 2 tbsp. spoons of ash. Planting pattern: distance in the row between plants is 35-40 cm, row spacing is 60 cm.

I was convinced that plants grow and develop better in open ground if they are covered with film or agrofibre for at least 2-3 weeks. Under cover you can carry out foliar feeding of plants chicken droppings. To do this, I fill 2/3 of a bucket of fresh chicken manure with water above the level of the manure. The droppings will begin to decompose and the carbon dioxide will dramatically accelerate the growth and development of the stevia plant.

After planting, plants need to be watered regularly, especially in dry years. When stevia blooms, it is a signal that it is time to harvest the medicinal leaves. During this period, the greatest amount of stevioside accumulates in the leaves. I dry the plants cut at a height of 10-15 cm from the ground in the shade. I harvest stevia for seeds at the end of August - September, when the stalks of the plants turn black. You need to carefully monitor the ripening of the seeds; if they are not removed in time, they will scatter.

Growing stevia in your garden is a chance to solve your health problems without resorting to medications. Thanks to this plant, which has unique healing properties, in our family we have forgotten about many ailments. I advise you to make friends with stevia too.

Great recipe with stevia

KULICH WITH STEVIA

Curdled milk - 300 g, flour - 220 g, cottage cheese - 100 g, vanilla sugar - 8 g, baking powder - 4 teaspoons, lemon zest - 2 teaspoons, stevia extract - to taste, raisins - 100 g.

Mix the curdled milk with baking powder and leave for 10 minutes. Wash the raisins, dry them and mix with 1 teaspoon of flour. Grate the zest of one lemon. Mix cottage cheese, vanilla sugar, lemon zest and stevia. Pour in the yogurt and beat with a mixer. Add sifted flour and raisins, mix. Fill the cake pan 2/3 full with dough. Bake in the oven for about 1 hour.

Stevia plant - a healthy sweet

Advised by experienced gardener and herbalist Nikita Ilyich KOTOVSKY

Probably, many of us have thought about whether sugar is harmful or beneficial. Moreover, conflicting information on this matter constantly appears in the media and advertisements for various sweeteners appear. One of the main components of such substitutes is stevia. This plant will be discussed today.

Stevia is worth a try!

Stevia leaves contain a huge number of vitamins (A, C, D, E, P, PP), microelements (calcium, potassium, zinc, selenium, phosphorus, iron, cobalt and others), glucosides, amino acids, essential oils, fiber. Therefore, growing it on your own plot will be very useful. However, this is not so easy to do.

The fact is that you are unlikely to find stevia seedlings, and the germination rate of seeds is only 5%. But it's still worth a try.

First you need to grow seedlings. To do this, purchase stevia seeds with a reserve. Prepare the soil and pots for planting. The soil should be a mixture of humus, turf and sand in equal proportions. Fill the pots with soil. Place the seeds on a saucer and cover with lukewarm water for half an hour. Then take them out and dry them. Also water the soil in the pots with warm water. Sow the seeds to a depth of 3-5 mm. Cover each pot plastic bag and place in a warm place. Shoots should appear in 5-10 days.

Since stevia is a heat- and moisture-loving plant, it must not only be watered, but also sprayed. Approximately once every 7-10 days, add complex mineral fertilizer to the water for irrigation.

And now - into the ground

Stevia should be planted in open ground in June, when the average daily temperature is already quite high. A month before, in the place chosen for planting (it should be sunny and without stagnant moisture), you need to weed out all the weeds, and mix the soil with humus and sand in equal proportions.

Stevia should be watered daily (if there is no rain), weeded and fed with manure 2 times a month (1 kg of manure per bucket of water per 1 sq. m of soil). If suddenly the soil around the plants becomes covered with a white coating, then be sure to water such a bed with a weak solution of potassium permanganate.

Stevia usually blooms in early August. It is at this time that its leaves need to be harvested. You need to cut them off at a distance of 20-30 cm from the top. Then lay them out on paper in a ventilated area (not in the sun!).

Preparing for winter

Stevia is a heat-loving plant, so wintering in open ground is excluded. And in order not to have to grow it again from seeds, it is necessary to preserve the existing plants. To do this, at the end of September, cut the stem of the plant so that only 2-3 leaves remain from the ground. Carefully dig up the plant along with a lump of earth and transplant it into a pot. Water once a week. As soon as the spring sun begins to warm the room, move the stevia to a sunny window and begin watering more often, preparing it for transplanting into the soil.

Medicinal plant

Stevia, in addition to sweetness, has many other beneficial properties - anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial and diuretic. It is useful for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, cardiovascular system, improves immunity, lowers blood pressure and promotes weight loss, improves the functioning of the gallbladder and liver.

Use stevia as remedy Available in 2 forms - as an additive to tea (coffee) and as an independent drink.

Stevia drink is easy to make. Take a few fresh leaves, pour boiling water over them and let it brew for 5-7 minutes. Drinking this drink helps normalize weight and improve digestion.

As an additive to 8 tea, you can use crushed and dried stevia leaves or its infusion. To prepare the infusion, take 1 tbsp. l. chopped leaves, pour 1 cup of boiling water and put on fire. Cook for 5-7 minutes. Then remove the infusion from the heat and leave for 5 minutes. Then pour into a thermos - let it sit for 8 hours. After that, strain and add 1-2 tsp. in your favorite drinks. Store the infusion in the refrigerator for no more than 3 days.

: Stevia plant - growing in...: Growing hypoestes at home Family...

Stevia or honey herb. She exudes magic and mystery. However, this is a completely natural and far from rare resident of many garden plots and even balconies, flowerpots or flower beds. It is not only capable of decorating the garden with its presence, but also has a lot of useful properties.

Growing stevia at home and in open ground

What is stevia

Stevia is a whole genus of perennials from the Asteraceae family, which unites more than 250 species of all kinds of shrubs and herbs. Their homeland is the plains and mountainous regions of America. The most popular type of stevia is honey, which is cultivated in summer cottages. This plant was first studied by the botanist Stevus in the 16th century, after whom it was named. The fact that honey stevia is used as food by the natives was once established by scientist Antonio Bertoni during his expedition to Paraguay. He noticed that the Indians called this plant “guarani” and prepared tasty and sweet drinks from it.

Stevia is a natural sugar substitute

The fact is that stevia is a natural sugar substitute: a couple of leaves of the herb are enough to sweeten a cup of tea. Its leaves contain a substance that in the 20th century was called “stevioside” - it is hundreds of times sweeter than regular sugar. By the way, stevioside is recognized as the sweetest natural product in the whole world.

Stevia honey is a subshrub up to 80 cm high, abundantly branched, with small paired leaves and a developed root system. Blooms with small white flowers. Now widely used in cooking in Asian countries and South America.

The most popular type of stevia is honey stevia.

Growing conditions

Stevia respects warmth and sunlight, so it should grow in a well-lit place where there is protection from drafts and gusts of wind, and the ideal air temperature for it should be at least 22 degrees. It is also worth remembering that you cannot plant stevia in lowlands where water can accumulate - its excess is detrimental to the plant.

In terms of soil, stevia is relatively not picky - it can grow anywhere, as long as the soil is not too saline. The ideal soil for it is light sandy loam and sandy substrates with the addition of organic fertilizers.

Stevia respects warmth and sunlight

Stevia respects compost and humus, but you should be careful with peat, as it does not grow well on it.

Good predecessors for it are legumes. The pH of the soil should be in the range of 5.5-6. If there is only clay soil in the garden plot, then turf, humus and coarse sand should be added to it so that it becomes loose and light - the way stevia loves.

Growing stevia

Stevia seeds

Growing stevia from seeds is not an easy task. This is a very capricious plant. Most seeds end up being unsuitable for growing. The seedling period of stevia lasts about 2 months, so they begin to sow the seeds in April.

1. Prepare boxes and soil for sowing.

   Preparing the soil and container for planting

2. Make small holes on the surface of the ground and place 2-3 seeds in each.

   Planting seeds

3. Lightly sprinkle the holes with seeds with soil - the layer should be no more than 3 cm.

   Sprinkle with earth

4. Moisten the soil surface with water using a spray bottle and cover with film or glass.

   Create a greenhouse effect

5. Place a box with future seedlings under a UV lamp. During the first days, do not turn it off even at night.
6. Ensure the air temperature in the room with the boxes is at least 25 degrees.
7. The first shoots will appear in 1-2 weeks. After this, immediately remove the lid from the seedlings.
8. After 3 weeks, reduce the operating time of the UV lamp to 15 hours a day.
9. When the seedlings have strong leaves, they are thinned out, removing frail plants.

   The first stevia sprouts

Stevia can also be grown from cuttings. This method is much simpler than the previous one, but it will require a mother plant that is at least 2 months old. Cuttings of the tops of shoots about 10 cm long should be cut in May-June. Before rooting, the lower leaves are removed, then dug into the ground to a depth of 6 cm, sprayed with water and covered with a jar or film. At first, the cutting and the soil around it are sprayed several times a day with a spray bottle. Rooting occurs within 10 days.

Growing stevia from seeds

Video - Growing stevia seedlings

Seedling care

While the plants are very small, water them very carefully, while controlling the humidity - the soil should not be soggy. Ideally, if you can organize bottom watering, that is, place the box with seedlings in water for a while.

There should be no drafts on the windowsill where the seedlings are located, and it is also important to remove other house plants - stevia does not like neighbors.

When small stevia plants grow and stretch up to 12 cm, their tops are shortened by 3-4 cm

When small stevias grow and stretch up to 12 cm, their tops are shortened by 3-4 cm - thanks to this procedure, the plants will begin to branch well.

If you plan to grow stevia in an apartment, then at the end of the seedling period the bushes need to be transplanted into separate pots with a diameter of at least 10 cm.

Growing stevia in pots

Transplantation into open ground

Relocating stevia to the street is one of the most crucial moments. Wrong actions can ruin all your work. Before the plants finally move outside, it is important to harden them off. To do this, the seedlings are first planted in separate pots and then placed outside for several hours every day. The weather at this time should be warm and sunny. Each time, young stevia plants remain on the street longer and longer.

Stevia is planted in the ground when the risk of frost is minimal.

Planting in the ground is carried out when the risk of frost is minimal, and the air temperature during the day is at least 18 degrees. The procedure is best done in the evening.

1. We dig up the area for stevia well and remove the weeds.

   Digging up an area for stevia

2. We dig holes up to 8 cm deep at a distance of at least 40 cm from each other.
3. We add organic fertilizers to the holes (about 0.5 kg of humus).
4. We take the seedling out of the pot along with a lump of earth and lower it into the hole, sprinkle it with soil and compact it.

   Planting stevia in open ground

5. Water a little or spray the soil with a spray bottle.

Transplanting stevia into open ground

For the first time, until the plants take root, they are covered with film. Since the roots of stevia are located close to the surface, the soil around the plant is mulched so that they do not dry out.

Video - How to plant stevia in the ground correctly

Stevia care

Stevia is a lady with character. To prevent her from dying, it is important to provide her good conditions growth.

Despite all the desire, in Russia it is very rarely possible to grow honey grass to its full height - the climate is too cold. Harvesting can be done 4 months after sowing the seeds. This is usually the beginning of autumn - at this time the plant prepares for winter and begins to intensively store stevioside in the leaves.

You can harvest the crop 4 months after sowing the seeds

Harvesting is quite simple - the stems of the plant are cut and all the leaves are torn off, which are then dried in the sun or under a UV lamp.

It is important to know that stevia leaves cannot be dried for more than 12 hours, otherwise they will not be as sweet.

Secrets of growing stevia

Dried leaves store well in closed containers for a long time.

Dried stevia leaves store well in closed containers for a long time.

Useful properties

Honey grass has many beneficial properties, is widely used in medicine and is approved by the Ministry of Health.

Only 4 spoons dried leaves This plant can replace 1 glass of sugar.

1. This is the best natural low-calorie sugar substitute for diabetics and people with metabolic disorders.

   Stevia is the best natural low-calorie sugar substitute

2. Stevia is used in dietetics and cosmetology.
3. Honey grass is also used for the prevention and treatment of diseases of the cardiovascular system, gastrointestinal tract, and to strengthen the immune system.
4. If you drink tea from the leaves of honey grass regularly, the level of cholesterol in the blood decreases.
5. The leaves of this plant contain a large number of vitamins and microelements.
6. It is good to rinse your mouth with a decoction of stevia for gingivitis.
7. It is a natural antiseptic and is good for sore throats.
8. The plant accelerates wound healing and helps get rid of abscesses.
9. Stevia is added to confectionery products and salads, and aromatic teas are prepared from it.

   Aromatic teas are prepared with the addition of stevia.

Stevia - a guide to growing at home from seeds

Stevia is one of the best natural sugar substitutes. It is not without reason that 80% of its consumption occurs in the country of long-livers – Japan. Today I will tell you how to grow stevia from seeds at home. This is especially true for residents of remote cities who find it difficult to purchase it in stores.

I would like to warn you that the process of growing stevia is not easy. Honey grass is very fastidious and requires a lot of effort for successful growth. Therefore, think ten times whether you need such labor costs. If yes, then read on with confidence - you will soon learn a lot of interesting and useful things.

Stevia's natural growing environment

The homeland of sweet grass is Paraguay. This country is located in South America, so The main conditions for growing stevia are warmth, sun and sand..

The optimal temperature is 23-28 degrees Celsius. Protection from strong winds and drafts is necessary.

Priming– sand or a mixture of sand and humus in a slightly acidic environment (pH 5.5-6). The soil should be loose and very light. Stevia tolerates peat and calcareous soils worst of all.

Since South America does not have cold winters, stevia does not tolerate cold. Therefore, it is grown either at home in a pot on the windowsill, or as an annual plant on the ground.

Preparing to grow stevia from seeds

There are two main stages, correct execution which will provide a good chance of grass germination.

• Soil preparation. To create a soil similar to natural for stevia, you need to mix sand, black soil and humus. You can buy them at garden centers, or you can get them yourself in the forest. To obtain humus, remove the top layer of foliage. The soft layer to the hard layer of soil is humus. It is better to buy black soil and sand in the store. You need to mix the components - 2 parts sand, one part humus and 1% chernozem. By the way, on the Internet I saw ready-made soil mixtures specifically for growing honey grass.
• Stevia seeds. Seeds can be bought, and if you grow grass for a long time, you can collect it yourself as a harvest and a nice bonus. When collecting, pay attention to the windage of the seeds. Raise the grain half a meter above the ground and throw it. If it falls quickly, the seed is suitable for cultivation. Slowly flying grain is a barren flower. They are unsuitable for further use.

How to grow stevia from seeds at home

• The suitable time for seedlings is March - April. Even if you grow your own herbs at home, it is important to respect the seasons. If additional lighting is used, you can plant stevia a month earlier.
• The growing container can be anything. I advise beginners not to have large boxes, but to limit themselves to a plastic cup.
• The thickness of the soil should be 10 cm.
• Pre-soak the seeds in warm water for 30 minutes. Then dry it a little.
• How to plant stevia seeds - make many small depressions in the soil, 5 millimeters each, and place 1-2 grains there. Cover with soil. Spray a little water from a spray bottle on top.
• The stevia plant loves warmth and light. Therefore, cover the seedlings with a plastic or glass lid and place them in a very bright place. Ideally it should be placed under a fluorescent lamp. But it should not be placed in direct sunlight.
• When the seedlings sprout, they need to be thinned out and the lid removed.
• Monitor soil moisture. It should be slightly damp. If you can, do bottom watering.
• When the grass reaches 5 cm, transplant it into seedling soil. It differs in the following way: instead of one part of sand, you need to add one part of turf soil. Plant the sprouts at the depth of the first leaves.
• Once a week you need to feed stevia with mineral fertilizer.
• When the grass reaches 10-12 centimeters, cut off a little of the top. Then it will begin to branch.
• The seedling period of stevia is 8 weeks.
• Afterwards you can plant it in its permanent habitat - in flower pot. Don't forget to make a bottom drainage layer of pebbles. 3 centimeters is enough. Next is the seedling soil.

Long-term cultivation of stevia at home, care

If stevia has been grown for a long time, it can be propagated using cuttings. It is much more effective and easier than using seeds. To do this, cut off a shoot with leaves from mature grass, over 2 months old. The best time is May.

Plant it at a depth of 4 centimeters. Water well and cover with a jar or film, creating a greenhouse. In warmth and good watering, the cuttings germinate within 10 days.

Don't forget that honey grass needs good light. But it can die from direct sunlight. It also needs to be watered once or twice a week.

Twice a month you can feed the plant with fertilizers.

How to grow stevia in the countryside in open ground

Prepare the seedlings as described above.

• Stevia should be planted on the ground at an average daily temperature of 15-20 degrees. Usually this is May or June.
• Dig up the soil and remove all weeds. Sweet grass is very difficult to tolerate in proximity to other plants.
• Seedlings need to be planted to a depth of 6 centimeters. The distance between plants is about 30 centimeters. Add 300 grams of humus to each hole. After planting, pour a liter of warm water and cover with dry soil no higher than a third of the plant’s height.
• Cover the area where the grass is planted with agrofibre for 2 weeks.

When growing honey grass on the ground, it is important to remember that it is cold intolerant. Therefore, for the winter, the roots will need to be dug up and stored until the next planting. This method of growing stevia is more effective than growing stevia every year from seeds, since every year the roots will grow stronger and produce an increasingly larger harvest.

The roots survive wintering in a box with soil, at a temperature of 4 to 8 degrees, and at a humidity of about 80. Typically, these conditions in a cellar or basement.

Harvest

At the beginning of flowering, 16 weeks after planting, the long-awaited harvest can already be harvested. Usually this is the summer period. The stevia stem is cut at a height of 5 centimeters from the ground. The grass is tied into bunches and dried.

If the grass was grown for seeds, the grains are collected in September.

At the end of September, the roots can be dug up for storage if the cultivation takes place in open ground.

If you grow stevia at home, the leaves can be torn off constantly.

Drying the grass takes no more than 12 hours. You can grind the leaves using a coffee grinder.

Read about the rules for using stevia and its sweetness in this article.

Stevia is a perennial herbaceous plant from the Asteraceae family, the leaves of which contain a glucoside (stevioside), which is 300 times sweeter than sucrose. This sugar substitute is useful for everyone, especially for those with diabetes and obesity. It is no coincidence that many gardeners strive to grow a plant that came to us from South America (Paraguay). But not everyone has the right idea about the agricultural technology of stevia.

Stevia honey, or Honey grass (Stevia rebaudiana) is a species of plant of the genus Stevia (Stevia) of the Asteraceae, or Asteraceae family.

Honey stevia (Stevia rebaudiana). © Tammy

Growing stevia from seeds

The optimal soil and air temperature for the growth and development of honey stevia is 15..30°C.

In our country, it is preferable to grow stevia as an annual plant. First, seedlings are prepared (seeds are sown before mid-May), then two-month-old plants are planted in a greenhouse. However, I prefer to sow stevia directly in a permanent place - in pots. There should be a hole in the bottom of the pot, in addition, I put a 3 cm layer of crushed stone down the container, then sand. The soil for stevia is composed of garden soil and humus or lowland peat (3:1), pH 5.6-6.9 (neutral).

Stevia honey. © JRR

Stevia seeds are very small, 4 mm long and 0.5 mm wide. Therefore, I do not cover them, but simply lay them out on the surface of the moistened soil, then water them with water. I cover the pots with sowing in a transparent glass jar, plastic bottle or film and put it in a warm place (20..25°C). Under such conditions, stevia sprouts after 5 days. I keep the seedlings in the light, but under a jar. 1.5 months after germination, I gradually remove the jar for a while, and within a week I teach the plants to live without shelter. I transfer the strengthened seedlings without shelter to a sunlit windowsill.

After I remove the coverings from the plants, I make sure that the soil does not dry out (it should always be very moist). To keep the air moist, I spray the plants with water at room temperature two to three times a day. When the plants grow, I move the pots to the greenhouse. Starting from the second month after the emergence of stevia shoots, I feed them once every two weeks, alternating mineral and organic fertilizers. Consumption per 10 l: 10 g 34% ammonium nitrate and 40% potassium salt, 20 g of double superphosphate. I breed mullein in a ratio of 1:10. By autumn the plants reach 60-80 cm.

Propagation of stevia by cuttings

If you can’t buy fresh seeds, then be sure to leave a few pots of stevia for the winter, which I keep at home and use as mother plants for cutting green cuttings.

Rooting stevia cuttings. © chris

A green cutting is part of a young shoot with buds and leaves. I harvest them from well-developed, healthy stevia plants, which are at least two months old. Best term cutting cuttings - from mid-May to early June.

I cut off the shoots so that a stump with two to four leaves remains on the mother stevia plant. Then, by autumn, from the buds located in the axils of the leaves, 2-4 stems up to 60-80 cm long grow, the leaves of which can be used for food.

For rooting, a green stevia cutting must have three to five internodes, of which the upper ones have leaves and the lower ones without them. I root stevia cuttings in a glass or enamel container with water or a 1% sugar solution (one teaspoon per 1 liter of water). I cover the jar with black material so that the sun's rays do not fall into it: in the dark the cuttings take root better. On top of the jar I put cardboard with holes into which I place the cuttings so that the lower internode without leaves is immersed in water, and the leaves do not touch it and remain in the air. I cover the cuttings with a larger transparent jar or part of a plastic bottle.

I change the water after 3 days, and for better rooting, I spray the stevia leaves with water or a 1% sugar solution three times a day. At temperatures of 18..25°C, roots grow within a week. And when they reach 5-8 cm (after two weeks), I plant stevia in a bed in a greenhouse or in pots and keep the seedlings under film for a week. The soil should be moist before the cuttings root.

Stevia honey. © Irwin Goldman

Mature plants accumulate glycoside in the sun. However, young stevia and unrooted cuttings die under its rays. Therefore, I shade the bed with gauze or other material. I use soil and care for rooted stevia in the same way as for those grown from seeds. I water as needed, but at least once a week. 3 months after rooting of green cuttings, stevia shoots reach a length of 60-80 cm.

I pour boiling water over fresh and shade-dried stevia leaves and leave for 2-3 hours. I use the infusion for making compotes, coffee, cereals, and confectionery.

About the benefits of stevia

Stevia leaves are 300 times sweeter than sugar and contain more than 50 substances beneficial to the human body: mineral salts (calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, zinc, iron, cobalt, manganese); vitamins P, A, E, C; beta-carotene, amino acids, essential oils, pectins.

The uniqueness of stevia lies in the combination of vitamins and microelements with high sweetness and low calorie content. Therefore, drinks and products with stevia are used to control body weight and diabetes.

It is widely used as a sweetener in Japan, and in the USA and Canada it is used as a food additive. Medical research shows good results from using stevia to treat obesity and hypertension.

The myth about the dangers of stevia

Often on the Internet, a study from 1985 is cited claiming that steviosides and rebaudiosides (contained in stevia) allegedly cause mutations and, as a result, are carcinogenic.

However, many detailed and comprehensive studies have been conducted that do not support this claim. In particular, in 2006, the World Health Organization (WHO) conducted a comprehensive assessment of experimental studies conducted in animals and humans and came to the following conclusion: “steviosides and rebaudiosides are non-genotoxic, the genotoxicity of steviol and some of its oxidative derivatives has not been detected under natural conditions.” . The report also found no evidence of carcinogenicity. The report also states its beneficial properties: “stevioside has demonstrated a certain pharmacological effect in patients with hypertension and in those suffering from type 2 diabetes.”

Material used on growing stevia: G. Vorobyova

Today’s article is dedicated to all those who would like to see a healthy and sweet plant at home or in the country.

It is quite possible to grow stevia at home; it will require a little patience and accuracy, which will help you get your own natural sweetener at home.

You can also prepare many healing and irreplaceable decoctions and syrups from this herb, recipes for which I will present at the end of the article.

How to buy stevia seeds

Stevia is an exotic and heat-loving plant, but you should not pay attention to prejudices, because it will get along well in the Russian climate.

In the northern countries where the plant comes from, planting annual stevia is increasingly practiced. You can order this sweet herb only in trusted online stores.

The price of one bag of stevia seeds is about 50 rubles.

It is almost impossible to immediately grow stevia in open areas due to its low frost resistance. At the first cold weather, this tropical plant will die. To prevent such situations, it must be grown indoors, and then the grown seedlings must be transferred to open ground.

How to grow stevia at home

Stevia seedlings are very popular among gardeners; this planting method is considered more reliable. However, growing this plant with seeds is also quite possible, you just need to know some of its features.

Selection of stevia seeds

After purchasing seeds, first of all, you should check for empty seeds in the package. The fact is that in a temperate climate, 70% of the seeds turn out to be empty and completely unsuitable for cultivation.

Checking whether the seed is full is quite simple: throw each one from a distance of 50-60 cm from the floor and watch how they fall - full seeds will fall faster, empty seeds will dive smoothly to the ground.

The first ones are worth selecting for planting.

Choosing land for planting

Stevia is a capricious plant, so it may not like ordinary garden soil. In order to create ideal conditions for germination, add humus or compost to the chernozem in a 3:1 ratio.

If you think the soil is too clayey, add some sand. You can also use purchased soil - sweet grass will readily grow in it.

Ideal soil compositions for stevia:

1. 2 parts sand + 1 part 2-3 year old humus;
2. Humus + soil from a coniferous forest + sand (1:1:1);
3. Chernozem + sand (5:1);

What to remember before planting stevia

• The air temperature when growing at home should be at least 22 degrees Celsius, ideally 25°C;
• You need to find a place with good lighting, the plant loves the sun's rays;
• It is worth sowing sweet parfolia around the end of January - beginning of February: in this case, you need to sow the seeds in a container, covering it with polyethylene, and when the plant begins to produce the first shoots, you can begin to harden off the plants.

How to properly grow stevia seedlings from seeds

Preparing seeds for planting

• Soak the selected stevia seeds briefly in warm water and, after drying thoroughly, place them on gauze or paper.
• After the seeds have dried, distribute them evenly over the surface of the prepared soil.

Attention! Do not press the seeds into the ground, just scatter them carefully over the surface of the soil.

After this, we remove the container with the seeds under glass, a jar or film, thereby creating a greenhouse effect. Under good circumstances, the first shoots will appear in 5-7 days.

Caring for young stevia seedlings

After the first millimeters of roses appear on the surface of the earth, you need to start hardening them: remove the glass and put the container or any other container in a warm, dry and windless place.

Periodically spray the young shoots with water at room temperature.

In the phase of 2-3 true leaves, seedlings can be planted in a greenhouse or left to grow in the house. In the latter option, planting seedlings will require a wide pot (the stevia root system grows in breadth).

Secrets of caring for seedlings

Stevia is a capricious plant in terms of care. While the seeds have just sprouted, and planting in open ground is still a long way off, it is necessary to keep the plants in the right conditions.

• Maintenance in a mini-greenhouse: when the stevia seedlings have sprung, they should be covered with film or glass, maintaining constant humidity and a temperature of 22-25 degrees Celsius;
• Stevia is also fastidious in watering: the plant requires not dry, but not waterlogged soil. To do this, sprinkle the sprouts with water several times a day, constantly monitoring the condition of the soil (stevia can disappear in the dirt);
• We regularly “feed” stevia: to do this, we spray the plant once every two weeks, alternating mineral and organic fertilizers

How to plant stevia in open ground

The best time to transplant stevia into open ground is the end of March - the beginning of April (the plant grows ideally with 8 hours of daylight).

When Stevia reaches 20 cm in height, the plant can be planted in the open ground at the dacha. Before planting, seedlings need to be formed. To do this you will need several secrets.

How to trim stevia

We trim (shape) the plant:

• It is better to choose a warm time for pruning: the end of May-beginning of June will be the most suitable.
• We trim only the tops of the plants.
• We do pruning when the seedlings have lived outdoors for several months, so we will allow new side leaves to appear, which can later be used for rooting.

How to grow stevia in the countryside in open ground

After completing all the previous points, and making sure that the stevia is completely healthy and will survive in the garden soil, it can be planted.

• We choose a day with cloudy weather and high humidity for planting.
• For stevia, we select a separate area with straight sunlight and pre-ferment the soil with compost or sand.
• We plant seedlings: we deepen them by about 8 cm.
• Water the soil with warm water.
• We hill up the plant to about 13 stems.
• Cover the plant with film for about a week.

Caring for stevia is considered easy: we regularly loosen the soil and “feed” the plant every 10-12 days.

Attention! With the arrival of winter, when the temperature is already slightly below +10 ° C, stevia must be put in a greenhouse or moved home until it warms up.

How to root stevia cuttings

Do not rush to throw away unnecessary cuttings after trimming young plants - in the future they will facilitate the propagation process of stevia.

To root stevia cuttings, you need:

• Place the cuttings in a jar with slightly sweetened water;
• Cover the jar with an opaque, preferably black, cloth;
• Place the cardboard stand on the jar so that the leaves do not fall into the water;
• Every 3 days we change the water and spray the cuttings with fertilizer;
• After two weeks, we transplant the cuttings into the soil.

After planting the cuttings, cover them with film for at least a week. We care for stevia cuttings in the same way as for seedlings obtained from seeds: we regularly spray them with fertilizer and try not to over-moisten or dry out the soil (Stevia may simply die).

These were general rules for growing any type of stevia. As for honey grass, this species is distinguished by the ability to prepare it.

How to prepare the herb stevia at home

It is necessary to harvest honey stevia at the beginning and end of summer.

To do this:

• Cut the stem of honey stevia 15 cm from the ground;
• We tear off the leaves;
• We dry them in any convenient way: in the oven or in the sun (usually it takes 6-9 hours to dry);
• Grind (optional) and remove before use.

How to prepare stevia (extract, syrup)

There are not so many ways to prepare decoctions and syrups from honey stevia - this plant appeared in our country relatively recently. I offer several of the most popular recipes for using stevia.

Tea

Most often, sweet grass is consumed with tea.

• To do this, add the crushed leaves of the plant to the tea leaves in a 1:1 ratio; if desired, you can add a little mint or cinnamon.

Stevia extract with vodka

• To prepare the extract, you need to mix whole or crushed stevia leaves with vodka in a ratio of 1:10.
• Let it brew for 24 hours and strain through a sieve.
• Add water to the finished extract to taste.

Stevia syrup

To prepare the syrup you need an infusion. To prepare it you need:

• Pour 20 g of honey herb into a pre-prepared gauze bag, then leave it in boiling water in a thermos for 12 hours.
• Drain the infusion.
• Next, we infuse the leaves again in half a glass of boiling water for 8 hours.
• Combine both liquids.

Bring the finished infusion to thicken in a water bath. After a drop of such syrup does not spread over the plate, you can remove the liquid from the heat.

The finished liquid improves immunity and serves as an antibacterial agent. The resulting syrup is 100 times sweeter than sugar. Stevia syrup should be consumed with tea or just with water (4-5 drops per glass of liquid).

Now you are convinced that growing such a capricious plant as stevia is not at all difficult! It is enough just to know some of the features of its cultivation. But the result will pay off handsomely: you will get an excellent replacement for ordinary lemon balm or mint, as well as an excellent sugar substitute.

Remember that Stevia will always come in handy: in the spring it will help get rid of vitamin deficiency, in the summer it will have an antibacterial effect, and in the winter it will prevent you from getting sick and will give you pleasant memories of hot, aromatic tea.

You've probably all heard the terrible facts about the harm of sugar, which causes diabetes, teeth deterioration, extra pounds, and metabolic processes are disrupted. Fortunately, there is an excellent natural alternative - which is hundreds of times sweeter than beet or cane sugar.

A couple of tiny petals of the plant are enough for a large cup of tea. The easiest way is to buy the product at the pharmacy, but many are already thinking about growing stevia on their windowsills and garden beds, which turns out to be quite possible to grow at home from seeds.

Stevia is almost 4 hundred times sweeter than sugar and has no harmful effects on the human body. Therefore, it can be used by everyone, even diabetics of both types. In addition, it is able to normalize metabolic processes, remove toxins, remove cholesterol from the blood, and relieve inflammation oral cavity, fluxes, periodontal disease, and when used externally, treat wounds, boils, ulcers.

Of course, you always want to have such a miracle herb on hand, ideally growing it from a seed, in order to be able to control the quality and purity of the product. In nature, the plant prefers tropical conditions, so growing it in our climate in open ground is quite problematic, but if desired, everything is possible.

As experienced gardeners say, the culture is very whimsical and requires high temperature and humidity, young shoots are too tender, and purchased seeds do not produce abundant shoots.

Therefore, it is much easier to buy ready-made honey grass seedlings and plant them in pots or garden beds. However, if you have a great desire to go all the way on your own, creating a sweet bush from a seed, it’s possible, but I’ll tell you how to grow it and harvest it correctly.

How to grow seedlings from seeds

First you need to find seeds that will grow into full-fledged seedlings in the future. Fortunately, now the question “how to purchase seeds” does not cause difficulties. If your gardening store does not have such packaging, then you can order the product in one of the many online stores and just wait for the parcel.

You just need to take care of the purchasing problem in advance, since sowing should be done no later than mid-March.

Selection of seeds for planting

Equally important is the correct selection of seeds before planting, since traditionally the germination rate of the crop is low. My friend, I remember, bought a whole package, sowed it in boxes, but only one sprout sprouted, that was a shame!

Before sowing, I recommend that you check the quality of the seed using the sailing method - we throw the seeds into the water one at a time, if it sinks to the bottom quickly, then it is suitable for work. And those that spin and turn over are easier to throw away - you won’t get any shoots from them.

How to prepare seeds for planting

Before sowing, the seed material also needs to be prepared.

• Preparation consists of soaking good seeds in warm water, and then drying them on paper until completely dry. This will help increase the germination of the material and speed up the appearance of the first young shoots.
• The finished seeds should be placed in shallow holes, a couple of pieces in each hole, lightly sprinkled with soil (some gardeners recommend leaving the seeds on the surface of the ground altogether). All that remains is to sprinkle water from a spray bottle on top and wrap the box or pot with plastic wrap to create a warm and humid microclimate.
• Sufficient lighting is a must. To do this, when germinating seeds, it is necessary to keep fluorescent lamps on over the container with future seedlings around the clock. After germination of the plant, daylight hours can be reduced to 15 hours a day.

For a delicate tropical crop, warmth is important for its birth, so the pots with seeds should be placed on the warmest windowsill, additionally heating the room if necessary. Ideally, the temperature under the film should be 24-27 degrees - in colder conditions, seedlings will not appear.

If everything is done correctly, and the seeds turn out to be of high quality, then in 1-2 weeks the first shoots will appear.

What land to choose for planting

For the fastidious honey grass, it is important what soil the gardener chooses for planting.

The plant prefers light, fertilized loamy soils. If you think the soil is too clayey, you can add sand to it; a mixture of three parts black soil and one part compost will do.

If there is no access to good soil, then we choose a ready-made soil mixture in the store, since the root system of stevia is superficial and very sensitive to various kinds of impurities, debris, and pebbles.

The acidity of the soil is also important; in nature it can withstand up to 4-5, but at home you should stick to a neutral pH.

As for the pots that will be filled with the required soil, they should not be particularly deep, but wide - remember that the root system of the crop is superficial.

Seedling care

Well, the first sprouts of honey grass have appeared and now it is important to properly organize the care of the seedlings. As with germination, there are a lot of details involved and you need to get it right.

• After the first shoots appear, the polyethylene must be removed so as not to interfere with the growth of seedlings. In the future, the crops should be thinned out - either by removing the weakest sprouts, or by transplanting them one after another into another pot with a similar soil mixture to facilitate the establishment process.
• The room temperature should also be high, at least 20 degrees Celsius. Correct humidity is also important, and the capricious plant is afraid of both dryness and excess moisture - the superficial root system quickly dries out or begins to rot without maintaining the water balance.
• It is best to use bottom watering (that is, not water the soil itself, but add water to the pan so that it rises up through small capillaries in the soil and wets all layers) or lightly spray it a couple of times a day with a spray bottle.
• After the sprouts reach a height of 20 cm, they need to be trimmed, removing the tops about 5-7 cm long so as to leave a trunk with several branches. This procedure stimulates the branching of the sprout, which is necessary to produce many sweet petals.

Planting stevia in open ground

With the arrival of warmer weather, you can think about how to plant stevia in open ground, but before that you will have to work again.

First of all, it is important to harden the sprouts in advance by taking them out on warm days, first under the shade of trees or bushes in warm, wind-protected areas of the yard or country house. Over time, the period of seedlings staying in the fresh air increases, the bushes gradually learn to tolerate both the sun and the wind, and get used to the surrounding temperature.

Hardened sprouts are planted, as a rule, in June, when the earth has warmed up to +10 and above, so as not to inadvertently destroy tender plants.

The capricious culture is whimsical in literally everything, including the planting site. For her, it is worth looking for a site on a hill (so that water flowing after rains does not accumulate at the roots), but at the same time secluded, protected from drafts, well lit, with light and clean soil without stones and large quantity clay, with neutral acidity.

Honey grass prefers to grow alone, so there should be no other crops in its immediate vicinity.

Having chosen the ideal place, you can begin planting the grown bushes. To do this, carefully remove each sprout from the pot along with the earthen lump and plant it in pre-prepared holes, not very deep. The roots are lightly compacted, covered with soil, and a generous layer of mulch is added on top - this will help the surface root system maintain ideal moisture.

In this way, we plant the sprouts at a distance of 40 cm from one another and with 50 cm row spacing.

For establishment, the bed can be covered with film or each sprout can be covered with a cut plastic bottle for a week, although in warm weather, hardened plants take root well in open ground.

Caring for seedlings in open ground

Caring for seedlings after planting in open ground consists of maintaining moisture, weeding, loosening and fertilizing.

You need to water the garden bed no more than 3-4 times a week; it is important to maintain a balance so that the plant is not flooded, but also does not suffer from a lack of moisture. After each watering, the soil is carefully loosened, and all weeds that appear on the site must be removed, since the crop does not like uninvited neighbors.

Top dressing

To receive good harvest feeding is required, which makes its leaves sweet (when grown exclusively in a pot, the sweetness is much lower).

To do this, every two weeks you need to add nitrogenous fertilizers under the bush, alternating them with organic ones. The formulations should be diluted according to their instructions.

Plant pruning

Pruning the plant is especially important when growing exclusively at home, that is, if the bush is planted in a pot and grows for several years on the windowsill. Over time, its branches begin to lengthen and reach towards the sun, which reduces the number of petals, which is exactly what we need. Therefore, every six months such a plant is pruned, half the length of the shoot is removed (in short ones, up to a third). This procedure starts the branching process.

Plants planted in beds also sometimes need to be trimmed if they begin to stretch excessively.

How to root cuttings

When cutting seedlings or mature plants, cuttings remain that can be rooted and grown. The torn tops are sprouted in sweetened water (1 tsp per glass of water, change the liquid every three days). It is better to strengthen the branches so that the leaves do not fall into the water; cardboard with cut holes will come to the rescue.

Cover the container with water with a dark, opaque material to speed up the process of root formation. After the formation of a good root system, the seedlings are planted in pots or open ground.

Collection, drying, storage

It is important to discuss the collection, drying and storage of the product. By the end of summer, stevia needs to be replanted in pots and brought into a warm place, since even the first autumn frosts can be destructive for it. Many people grow the crop as an annual, simply cutting off all the branches and throwing away the roots. At this time it is worth preparing the product for the winter.

Only the leaves of the plant are valuable; they are taken from cut branches, dried in a warm dark room, oven at low temperature or special electric dryers for no more than 12 hours, so as not to destroy the beneficial substances. Subsequently, stevia is stored in dry glass containers, paper or linen bags for up to two years.

By the way, you can start harvesting in the summer, and when growing on a windowsill at home, all year round, selecting old leaves that curl around the edges. Its leaves grow for 3 months, and then they can be picked, dried little by little, or immediately used for preparing dishes and drinks.

What to cook with stevia

It remains to talk about how to use the obtained raw materials, what to prepare from stevia?

It turns out that the plant can easily replace sugar. It is important to remember that 1 gr. leaves is equal to 30 g. regular sugar. It is most convenient to use it in the form of syrups and infusions; sometimes powdered herbs are also used.

The sweetener has proven itself excellent in the preparation of muffins, cakes, pastries, cookies, pancakes, and jam. The only confectionery dish that cannot be made without sugar is meringue, since it involves crystallization of sugar under the influence of high temperature, and stevia simply cannot turn into caramel.

Stevia syrup

It is more convenient to prepare syrup and, if necessary, use it in cooking without the hassle of constantly steaming the leaves. To do this you need:

• fill the leaves with water in a ratio of 1:5;
• cook over low heat until evaporated;
• strain after 15 minutes;
• heat until thickened;
• cool and pour into a sterile jar;
• Use in baking and making drinks.

The easiest way is to make tea from honey herb. For this, take 1/3 tsp for a regular cup of boiling water. powder, wait a minute, strain and enjoy your tea.

You can also add a slice of lemon or mint to the drink; they give the tea an original taste.

Stevia extract

Both alcohol and water extracts are good. For the first option you need:

• take one part of the leaves and 10 parts of alcohol (can also be mixed with vodka), leave for a day;
• strain;
• Use by diluting with water or heating over a fire to reduce the strength of the drink.

The water extract is made in the same way as the syrup, only the liquid is not boiled until it thickens, but decreases in volume by 5 times. Now you know how to prepare extract for baking and drinks.

And for the third - compote with stevia. Watch the video.

Of course, you will have to work hard to get a good harvest, but you will be confident in the quality of the raw materials. Goodbye, subscribe to blog updates, good luck with your gardening experiments!