Stevia

[WVsnowflake]

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 Bertoni, commonly known as sweetleaf, sweet leaf, sugarleaf, or simply stevia, is widely grown for its sweet leaves. As a 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 an attractive as a natural sweetener to people on carbohydrate-controlled diets. However, health and political controversies have limited stevia's availability in many countries; for example, the United States banned it in the early 1990s unless labeled as a supplement. Stevia is widely used as a sweetener in Japan, and it is now available in Canada as a dietary supplement.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevia

[WVsnowflake]

I think I am going to try to grow this and try it in our Ice teas.... Along with mint...

[naturelovr]

thanks for posting this snowflake.....i've read an awful lot on stevia......it's a real healthy alternative in sweeteners, from what i've read....

main reason we don't have it in common usage here is the political aspect.....won't go into it here......but grumble, grumble.............

it's pretty much a health food store item, so it's quite expensive....little goes a really long way though.....if ya can grow it, it'd be well worth it......

[olhillbilly]

I think if I remember rite, if yer above zone 6 or meybe it was 7, yer gonna havta raise em indoors. Seems like it was a southern grown plant.

[WVsnowflake]

Thats why I want to build a green house