How to Grow Sweet Stevia in a Container Garden

Stevia Rebaudiana, often called sweet stevia or simply stevia, is the plant from which several zero calorie sweeteners, including Truvia and PureVia, are made. There are also many varieties of natural stevia-based sweeteners, generally available in powdered and liquid form. These can be made at home from high quality stevia leaves. Stevia-based sweeteners can be used to sweeten foods and beverages without adding calories. The leaves themselves can be used whole, chopped, or ground.

Leaves should be harvested before the stevia plant flowers.
Photo by Ethel Aardvark

The leaves have more of a "flavor," as opposed to pure sweetness, than either commercial or homemade extracts, and will not, of course, dissolve in liquids. The leaves of a stevia plant can be up to thirty times as sweet as sugar!

Stevia grows to a height of two to three feet. Its lush, green foliage makes it an attractive plant for a patio garden. A hardy annual or tender perennial, stevia is ideally suited to the container garden, and will continue to produce bountiful naturally sweet leaves for years in areas where winters are mild, or where the plants can be brought inside for particularly cold weather.