THE SEEDS ARE SHIPPED IN TRANSPARENT SACHETS, WITH A CARD INSIDE INDICATING THE VARIETY OF THE SEED +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 2000 SEEDS OF STEVIA REBAUDIANA FRESH SEEDS SWEETENER FOR DIABETICS NATURAL SWEETENER ..................................................................................... Stevia (Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni) Bertoni) It is a small, herbaceous, perennial, dicotyledonous angiosperm plant of the Asteraceae family. (Compositae), native to the mountains between Paraguay and Brazil. It is known to be used as a natural low-calorie sweetener.. Stevia rebaudiana is a perennial plant that is not very resistant to frost. In warmer climates it is usually grown as a semi-perennial.. It reaches a height of about half a meter. The leaves are lanceolate or elliptical, with a serrated edge, are alternate, simple, bright dark green and have a rough surface, sometimes a little hairy.. It has very small, numerous, whitish hermaphroditic flowers, gathered in flower heads that are pollinated by insects.. Flowering is late autumn. The fruits are achenes with a downy pappus that facilitates their transport by the wind.. History S.rebaudiana has been used over the centuries by the Guaraní people of Brazil and Paraguay, who called it kaʼa heʼẽ ("sweet grass"), to sweeten mate, as a medicine and as a sweetener In 1899, the Swiss botanist Mosè Giacomo Bertoni first described the plant as spontaneous in eastern Paraguay and observed its sweet taste. The first scientist who described them was the Swiss botanist Bertoni who in 1887 attributed various effects to the leaves: hypotensive but energizing, hypoglycemic and regulator of glucose homeostasis, digestive, rebalancing of skin and mucous membranes and of the entire oral environment. In 1931, chemists M. Bridel and R. Lavielle isolated the glycosides stevioside and rebaudioside which give the leaves their sweet flavor.. The exact chemical structures of steviol aglycone and its glycoside were published in 1955.. Based on the statements of the World Health Organization (Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives), The safe intake of steviol glycosides for humans is 4 mg per kg of body weight per day.. Cultivation Commercial cultivation of stevia began in the 1960s, and has spread to Japan, Southeast Asia and the United States, but also to slightly tropical climates in the hilly areas of Nepal or India. (Assam region). The plant prefers warm, humid and sunny conditions.; It cannot survive frost during the winter and is therefore preferably grown in greenhouses in Europe. Duke University researchers have developed a strategic plan to help Paraguayan farmers and exporters compete in the global stevia market. It does not grow well in compact soils, preferring loose ones.; therefore it is a plant of ruderal environments and of loose and worked soil rather than a meadow plant; It is quite tolerant of soil acidity. It requires a sunny exposure, but also grows well in a semi-shaded position.. In case of cold climates it can be protected by mulching, allowing the survival of the basal part which will vegetate again in spring.. In case of very cold weather it can obviously be brought into the greenhouse, bringing it back outside after the last spring frosts.. The plant is also suitable for growing in pots, with a medium-large container.. Reproduction and multiplication It is usually reproduced by seed, and multiplied by cutting with a good success rate.. The seeds are tiny, and before sowing they are usually mixed with sand to avoid too dense a distribution.. The germination percentage is modest. It is advisable not to let the soil dry out during germination.. Seedlings are transplanted individually when they have put out their second pair of true leaves, planting them outside after the last frosts, and providing them with some protection until the plant is well established.. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- THE SEEDS ARE SHIPPED IN TRANSPARENT SACHETS, WITH A CARD INSIDE INDICATING THE VARIETY OF THE SEED
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