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| Stevia Harvest |
Answered by: Inge Poot
Question from: Bent Johansen
Posted on: October 30, 2001
Last year I bought some seeds from the plant stevia from you. I now have some nice 50 centimeters high plants, whose sweet leaves we have had the enjoyment of using as an excellent substitute for sugar, for instance in tea this summer. Stevia seems to grow well here in Denmark, and I will leave some of the plants outside this winter, covered up. In spring, I shall inform you whether they survived or not.
I would like to inquire about how to harvest from the plant, to use in the winter. Can we harvest a whole plant, or only a certain amount of leaves? I am aware of that the plants must be kept in a light and frost-free area over winter. But what will happen to the plants? Do the leaves and some of the stem wilt during winter? I would be very happy if you could possibly answer some of my questions.
To harvest for the winter, leave the bottom 10 centimeters of the plant , but cut off and dry the rest. Remove the stems from the dry plants as they have a bitter taste. The stems left on the plant will wilt and die down in the winter. Overwintering buds will form at the base of the plant if everything proceeds as it should.