Has anyone had success in growing stevia indoors in winter? Any tips on doing so?
Growing Stevia Indoors
Vickie, I haven't grown it but I would like to. Did you raise yours from seed?
I did once try to grow stevia in a pot with intentions of moving it outside when roots were well established. Evidently I neglected it because it didn't make it. Now I'm willing to try again and pay more attention. I am now using packaged stevia as a sweetener and like it. (I can't use Splenda or other artificial sweeteners.) A glass of iced tea brewed with lemon verbena and sweetened with stevia is pretty darned good.
I have a hard time finding stevia each year in our area so I started seed saving from the plant and then taking cuttings before the first threat of freeze...or actually anything below 40 deg. The cuttings generally root well in about 3 weeks under a daily misting and one or two of them are used as houseplants and then put into the ground the following spring as that year's outdoor stevia.
Inside...I find that the plant requires 6 hours of sun and benefits from being put into an eastern window. I have never had one bloom in the house, which is fine because the goal is to harvest and have fresh leaves to use...I use the same system as with lemon verbena (yum!) and basil...the pots are usually 2 to 3 gallon...hope this helps.
Okay... I just ordered some seeds from www.summerhillseeds.com. I'm hoping I like the fresh Stevia better than the stuff in the box - couldn't like it!
Does the soil in the pot need to dry out completely before watering? I think water quantity was the issue I had. By the way, last time I checked (and it's been awhile) Sandy Mush Herb Nursery in Leicester, NC, had the plants. Thanks for the tips!
I mist the plant about once a week...all the indoor herbs...The misting is to counter the lack of humidity in the house...I use pot nannies to water and fertilize...one large plant per pot and one large nanny per pot...the top soil isn't a valid indicator of moisture need in my opinion and the nannies get right to the roots and keep them moist...almost on demand....
Great idea. Suggestions on good nannies? (I'll probably have to order online because I live in a place where finding anything that is not at Wal-mart is a problem.) I used some last year that simply did not monitor the moisture accurately.
I can't remember where I bought mine. I know it was a mail order place and yes, on line...I have a bunch now...they are terra cotta so all I have to do is touch the rim and know that it needs water....I am pretty sure that a search on Plant Nannies would work. They were designed to hold a wine bottle full of water...I only do that when I am going to be gone.
I also use them in the greenhouse for my large tropicals since they usually need more monitoring as the temperatures get towards 90s in the summer.
I did a search and found many sources with prices ranging from very affordable to very expensive so it will pay to look around. Thanks. This is probably the answer to my indoor herb growing. I have these for my garden (big ones) but had not thought to put them in houseplants.
PaganCat---You just have to keep trying until you get used to it. At first it leaves quite an after taste, but eventually you don't notice it. I now use a half packet in my coffee every morning . Some days I cheat and add a tiny 1/4 teaspoon of honey along with it. I don't use it in baking, though.
Well.... I got the seeds, but haven't been really excited about starting them, with all these poor germination reports.
Thanks, beebonnet - it never occurred to me that the taste might change, or at least my perception of it.
Pagancat: I grew stevia from seed for the first time this year. I also was leary of the poor germination rates, but I got about 70% from my seeds. Didn't do anything special with them--maybe it was beginners luck?
Hey you - welcome home!
Did you sow them indoors in a starting mix?
Yep, same starting mix as everything else. I seem to remember 2 things--the seeds were very small, and they were a little slower to germinate. It also seemed like they grew slowly at first, and it took me quite a while to get the plants to a reasonable planting-out stage. By summer's end, though, they had flourished. Need to keep pinching them back to prevent flower production. I think I will start those earlier this year--probably will start 10-12 weeks out, rather than my usual 8 that I allow for herbs.
I may have to try rooting some at the end of the season, as someone up above did. Might be easier than starting from seed every year in our zone.
I tried to grow stevia indoors twice. Both times I started with a potted plant and things were okay for a while. The first time I even got several cuttings to root in soil and traded them with other DG members. The potted plants were very sensitive to drought (particularly the new growth) and we went through several crunchy leaf episodes when I was traveling for work and DH didn't notice them. The other problem was the constant battle with whiteflies. I didn't want to use anything stronger than soapy water because I wanted to eat the leaves but daily blasting in the sink was not keeping the whiteflies under control. The plant slowly diminished until I gave up trying to keep it alive.
I'm not trying to discourage anyone from growing it, just be extra vigilant about watering, whiteflies, and aphids when it's indoors.
Interesting - I wonder if it declined because of the bugs or the crunchy-leaf periods, or maybe some other factor? Sure sounds like a persnickety plant.
Ha! Ha! I would never call this plant persnickety!...it can be an abundant reseeder in the yard and my biggest problem in the house is that it outgrows it's pot too quickly...I have it in a 95 qt tub now (covered with something to hide the black) and the plant is robust and putting off all sorts of new leaves. It does require lots of sun or it will wither...and perhaps this is a time to remind everyone that most herbs do not like small pots in a windowsill...if anyone needs some seeds let me know...I have a couple of packets left and most certainly will have seedlings in the fall...
Ah, yet another reason why I have zone envy, and moisture envy. I think mine just hated everything about being indoors.