[Frank Woolf]

The fresh leaves are sweet and are a delight to chew. The leaves could be used to sweeten coffee or tea. That's good for those who are dieting because Stevia is claimed to contain no calories. The leaves can be dried and used in drinks, preserves, breads and diet foods. It is also considered a very good tonic with lots of health benefits.

Stevia is a genus of about 240 species of herbs and shrubs in the sunflower family (Asteraceae), native to subtropical and tropical South America and Central America. The species Stevia rebaudiana, commonly known as sweetleaf, sweet leaf, sugarleaf, or simply stevia, is widely grown for its sweet leaves. As a sweetener and sugar substitute, stevia's taste has a slower onset and longer duration than that of sugar, although some of its extracts may have a bitter or licorice-like aftertaste at high concentrations.

With its extracts having up to 300 times the sweetness of sugar, stevia has garnered attention with the rise in demand for low-carbohydrate, low-sugar food alternatives. Medical research has also shown possible benefits of stevia in treating obesity and high blood pressure. Because stevia has a negligible effect on blood glucose, it is attractive as a natural sweetener to people on carbohydrate-controlled diets. Stevia is widely used as a sweetener in Japan, and it is now available in Canada as a dietary supplement.

Medicinal use
For centuries, the Guaraní tribes of Paraguay and Brazil used stevia, which they called ka'a he'ê ("sweet herb"), as a sweetener in yerba mate and medicinal teas for treating heartburn and other ailments.

More recent medical research has shown promise in treating obesity and hypertension. Stevia has a negligible effect on blood glucose, even enhancing glucose tolerance; therefore, it is attractive as a natural sweetener to diabetics and others on carbohydrate-controlled diets.

Possible treatment of osteoporosis has been suggested by observations that eggshell breakage can be reduced by 75% by adding a small percentage of stevia leaf powder to chicken feed, and that pigs given 2% stevia leaf powder in their feed experienced a doubling of serum calcium.

[Razzman]

I was going to tell you about stevia. I've been using it for around 3 years now. Been growing it in may garden and harvesting the leaves. Still, I find it more convenient to buy the processed stevia and use it in my coffee. On my Penalty Box forum, I have been posting about stevia and it's great benefits. Here's some of the info I posted about...

The Stevia story is an interesting one. It is full of drama and even FDA raids on stores selling the product. The FDA outlawed Stevia when the big sugar industry protested to the FDA about Stevia and then two years later, it relented some by allowing health food stores to sell it as a supliment.

It is typical of our government to outlaw something that is beneficial for everyone. Special interests rule the day and that is the case with Stevia. Japan has really embraced Stevia and over half their soft drinks now use Stevia as the sweetener. IN fact half the sweetener consumptions in Japan uses Stevia. South American countries also use it a lot.

Here's the health benefits of Stevia...

http://reid_j.tripod.com/stevia.htm

[Razzman]

It is so hypocritical of the FDA to support a sugar substitute that actually promotes cancer, but ban a natural sweetner as unhealthy. This must be the Bizarro world as the FDA is more into representing a big sugar subsitute industry than doing what's right for the consumer.

Here's another article about the FDA fight against Stevia...

http://www.naturalnews.com/023728_st...A_the_FDA.html

Another article (below) shows the FDA's fight FOR aspartame, a proven cancer-causing agent, and AGAINST Stevia, a naturally grown herb that has been used safely for thousands of year. Stevia is now the main sweetner for most countries in their diet soft drinks, instead of aspartame. But in America, the FDA is still banning it as if it were actually aspartame, which is the really bad sugar substitute, not Stevia.

http://www.stevia-plant.com/strongarming.cfm

[Frank Woolf]

I have a couple of plants that are supposed to be stevia but they don't look like the plant in your picture. I need to do some checking.

[Razzman]

Originally Posted by Frank Woolf

I have a couple of plants that are supposed to be stevia but they don't look like the plant in your picture. I need to do some checking.

I sent away for the seeds a couple years ago. Don't have the web site on hand, but when I Googled "Stevia seeds" I see there are a lot more sites that offer them, including Burpee...

http://www.burpee.com/category/herbs/stevia.do

[Frank Woolf]

Thanks I will do the same. So many people here selling plants don't know the correct names or they give the same name to many plants like lemon, lime, calamasi, dalandan, etc are all called lemon!

[Razzman]

Originally Posted by Frank Woolf

Thanks I will do the same. So many people here selling plants don't know the correct names or they give the same name to many plants like lemon, lime, calamasi, dalandan, etc are all called lemon!

I did see last year that they were selling stevia seedlings ready to plant at Home Depot last spring. Found the papers with the instructions for stating the seeds here at work, and I got my seeds from this site:

http://prairieoakpublishing.com

They have a lot of info there about stevia, from ordering seeds to growing the plants to recipes. They've really expanded the site. Check it out as there is a lot of tips about starting the seeds, harvesting and then processing the stevia so that it can be used in food and drink.

[Frank Woolf]

My favourite seed supplier for around 40 years has been Thompson and Morgan in England http://www.tandmworldwide.com/ but I will check out these sites, thanks.

[Razzman]

Originally Posted by Frank Woolf

My favourite seed supplier for around 40 years has been Thompson and Morgan in England http://www.tandmworldwide.com/ but I will check out these sites, thanks.

Thanks for the tip. I usually by my seeds at any stores that carry Burpee seeds. They have been my favorites over the years.

Have been growing the stevia from the seeds I planted about 3 years ago. I keep on cutting some of the stems and sticking them in water or directly into potting soil and some of them take. Like munching on the dried leaves I have at work.

[Frank Woolf]

I guess that any plants here will just keep growing as we have no winter. I double checked the two plants I have and on closer inspection they are like yours except they are lighter color and the leaves are a bit wider. The leaves don't taste sweet though.

I took a trailer load of plants, including the Stevia, to the beach lot yesterday and planted them where I know the soil is very good so hopefully they will become a lot stronger and healthier. They are very weak now, probably from being cramped in pots for much too long.