Some Crimeans prefer to grow medicinal herbs stevia also because this gift of nature has a lot of medicinal properties. If used in food it leaves instead of sweets, blood sugar levels return to normal. In addition, Medicinal herbs stevia improves digestion in general, removes decay, strengthens the cardiovascular system and the body's defenses .
Stevia loves heat and light. In the garden it is worth grown as an annual plant and plant in well sheltered areas. It is desirable in a light soil , loose substrate with a weakly acidic (pH 5.5 - 6 ) reaction. In heavy clay soils need to add sand, humus, sod, but not peat. Soil can not calcify.
Propagated plant or division of rhizomes, cuttings or apical shoots.
More commonly the second method. Rooting cuttings is usually carried out in March. Take moisture capacity substrate (humus , humus , river sand in the ratio 2:1:0,5 ) , watered his little pink solution of potassium permanganate, fill them shallow container and cuttings planted under the scheme: Depth - 1.5 - 2.5 cm, the distance between rows - 3 - 4 cm between plants in a row - 3 cm boxes with cuttings placed in a room with temperature 22 - 24 ° C and sprayed with water every day . Rooting takes place on 10 - 12 day and 14 - day 15 of development in plants removed apical buds ( for the formation of the crown ).
Already after the seedlings form a 4 - to 6-leaf , they will be ready for transplanting in the open ground . Soil for planting stevia previously well fertilized with humus . Distance between plants - 20 cm and between rows - 60 cm plants are planted in cloudy weather or at night time. In the first week after planting watered daily , avoiding drying of the soil. Usual care : regular watering and timely soil loosening.
The first harvest is removed during flowering. After the first cleaning plants can feed the phosphorus- nitrogen fertilizer . Second crop is removed in mid-October ( between the beginning and the full flowering) . Fall, before the frost , dig up the rhizomes stevia and stored indoors at a temperature of 5 - 8 ° C , placing them in boxes with sand . Sand moistened periodically , avoiding drying it. As a rule, one plant produced 30 - 80 g of dry leaf (which can replace a bag of sugar ) . So if you do not require a large amount of raw honey can be grown in pots grass just as a houseplant . With this you get and cuttings for propagation, and ripened seeds.
How to grow stevia in the room? First seedlings planted in pots in a 2 liter prepared pochvosmes . Pots with seedlings placed in the most -lit area. Watered moderately (1 every 4 - 5 days) . Every 10 - 15 days or fed solution vermisola Humisol . Every 12 - 15 days are sprayed with warm water.
After the plants reach 16 - 17 cm, is removed apex (to enhance the tillering ) and increase by 50 % the rate dressings (up to 300 ml at a time) . From December to mid-March seedlings dosvechivayut sunlamp ( 3:00 in the morning and 3:00 in the evening) . Summer pots with stevia keep on the balcony. After 6 - 7 months of growth plants are transplanted to 4-liter capacity , and a year later in the capacity of 8 liters. Spend transplant carefully taking the square root with a clod of earth. Composition of the mixture of the soil does not . After each transplant fertilizing rate increased by 50%.
If you need just a few leaves to heal , then they are removed from the lower shoots ( one sheet at a time of escape ) . Do it evenly , picking shoots of at least 10 - 12 cm at a time.
To maximize the properties of stevia need to learn to cook her extract. It's simple enough . At the output will be a liquid or a mixture of thick syrup , depending on whether the composition evaporate.
To prepare the extract of stevia you need clean food alcohol ( vodka can also be used ) , which is necessary to fill the dried and powdered leaves. Further, the composition leave for a day , then carefully filter the liquid. The alcohol content can be reduced, which filtered the mixture is heated over low heat, without boiling. When preparing an aqueous extract valuable substances are released into the water at lower concentrations . Syrup stevia obtained by evaporation of the liquid.
When harvesting stems with leaves removed and dried in a ventilated area away from direct sunlight. Store dry leaves removed from the stems, in cotton bags.
For use of dry leaves prepared powder that can replace sugar in the preparation of any food where it is needed. Powder prepared infusion, it is added to coffee, tea, fruit drinks, yogurt , etc. To prepare 1 teaspoon of powder is added 250 ml of boiling water 15 minutes and heated in a water bath , then filtered. Medicinal herbs stevia is widely used to sweeten wine, liquor, soft drinks, added to the pastry. It serves as an excellent preservative for fruits and vegetables. In cosmetics masks from medicinal herbs stevia leaves are used to smooth wrinkles in medicine - for pain relief for insect bites and burns.