Stevia is associated with the Element Water and the Planet Jupiter.
The stevia plant is part of the Asteraceae family, related to the daisy and ragweed. Several stevia species called "candyleaf" are native to New Mexico, Arizona and Texas; but the prized species, Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni), grows in Paraguay and Brazil, where people have used leaves from the stevia bush to sweeten food for hundreds of years. In traditional medicine in these regions, stevia also served as a treatment for burns, colic, stomach problems and sometimes as a contraceptive.
If you’ve ever tasted stevia, you know it’s extremely sweet. In fact, this remarkable noncaloric herb has been used as a sweetener and flavor enhancer for centuries.
Culinary
Crushed dried leaves (by hand or in a coffee/herb grinder) can be used as a sugar replacement in baking and cooking, but remember stevia is many times sweeter.
You can also make your own liquid stevia sweetener like simple syrup by bringing ¼ cup stevia leaves and 1 cup warm water just to a boil, then cool and keep refrigerated. I like to use this method for cocktails, and to toss with fresh fruit for a bit of extra natural sweetness.
Gardening
Organic gardeners in particular should find stevia an ideal addition as nontoxic stevia plants have been found to have insect-repelling tendencies. Their very sweetness, in fact, may be a kind of natural defense mechanism against aphids and other bugs that find it not to their taste
Stevia plants do best in a rich, loamy soil; the same kind in which common garden variety plants thrive. Tender young stevia plants are especially sensitive to low temperatures so it’s best to wait until the danger of frost is past before transplanting them to your garden.
Harvest & Storing
Harvesting should be done as late as possible since cool autumn temperatures and shorter days tend to intensify the sweetness of the plants. Once leaves have been harvested you will need to dry them; on a warm fall day your stevia crop can be quick dried in the full sun in about 12 hours. (Drying times longer than that will lower the stevioside content.) A home dehydrator can also be used, although sun drying is the preferred method. Dried leaves can be stored in airtight jars in a cool dry cabinet.
Harvest & Storing
Harvesting should be done as late as possible since cool autumn temperatures and shorter days tend to intensify the sweetness of the plants. Once leaves have been harvested you will need to dry them; on a warm fall day your stevia crop can be quick dried in the full sun in about 12 hours. (Drying times longer than that will lower the stevioside content.) A home dehydrator can also be used, although sun drying is the preferred method. Dried leaves can be stored in airtight jars in a cool dry cabinet.
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