Stevia

Stevia: plant 30 cm (12 in) apart in the row and 45 cm (18 in) between rows, 1 per square. No known bad neighbours.

Key facts

Spacing in the row	30 cm (12 in)
Between rows	45 cm (18 in)
In a 30 cm (1 ft) square	1 per square
Sun	Full sun, 6–8 hours a day
Root depth	25 cm (10 in)
Height when grown	70 cm (28 in)
Crop rotation group	Herbs, flowers and perennials
Support	None needed

How it is started	Started in trays, from cuttings
Seeds per hole	3
Plants kept after thinning	1
Sowing depth	0.2 cm (0.1 in)
Soil temperature	from 20 °C, best 24–28 °C
Days to emerge	10–20 days
Light while germinating	Needs light, barely cover
Before sowing	nothing needed
When to plant	Indoors 8 weeks before the last frost; outdoors after the last frost; soil at least 15 °C

After emergence	16–22 °C; take the cover off as soon as they show
Pricking out	at 2 true leaves
Takes transplanting	Easily
Hardening off	7–10 days
Life cycle	Tender perennial, grown as an annual where it freezes
Cold tolerance	Tender, hurt by frost
Soil	Light, sandy, free draining, pH 6–7.5
In a pot	5 L, 20 cm (7.9 in)
Watering	Water when the soil is dry two fingers down
Feeding	Little; at planting
Support and training	None needed; pinch the tips

Days to first harvest	90–120 days, from planting out
Ready when	The leaves are big enough to use
Harvest window	Picked again and again, 8–14 weeks
Typical yield	0.1–0.3 kg per plant
Botanical family	Asteraceae
Watch out for	Aphids, whitefly

Open the free planner, drop Stevia onto a bed and see how many plants fit.

My country Last spring frost where I live

Give the date once and this page, the sowing calendar and the planner all follow it.

Months for a temperate climate: about a month later in the north and a month earlier in the south. Give your own last frost date for exact dates.

Plants of the Asteraceae family share diseases and pests, so they follow each other in the rotation only after a break.

Crops that need about the same room and care, from another family.