I have Stevia Seeds to trade

[pngwin21]

I have organic Stevia Seeds available for trade. I am interested in rare, exotic, hard to find, medicinal, unique varieties of veggies, flowers, herbs seeds. Any seeds that are not common.

[applestar]

Do you have tips for growing them? How do you determine the more viable seeds? I have had no success so far.

[bangstrom]

Stevia seeds tend to have a low viability and they only remain viable for a few months unless properly dried and refrigerated. The dark colored seeds are good while the the light colored seeds are empty shells and, with my plants, about 99 percent were duds. You may have some rare plants with good seeds. Stevia seeds also need some light to germinate so the seeds should be scattered on the soil surface for best results. Last year my plants were threatened by frost before the seeds were ripe so I brought them inside and kept them alive until the seeds matured. After the seeds were harvested, I put the plants away and let them go dry. In the spring the plants began to sprout from the roots even though they were terribly dry and I thought they were dead. I planted the year old plants in the garden and now they are doing fine. Stevia is easy to propagate from cuttings but slow and somewhat difficult to grow from seed.

[applestar]

Thanks for the tip, bangstrom!
I'll look for the darker seeds. Now that you've mentioned, I don't think any of the "seeds" I planted were dark colored.

I also appreciate the overwintering tip. It's good to know not to give up hope. I've treated them as houseplants during the winter, and fight a losing battle with red spider mites until by spring they look incredibly scraggly, but they come back ith spring growth. I agree about the cuttings. I like starting back up plants, JIK.

[pngwin21]

Keep in mind you need more than 5, 10, 20, 30, 50+ seeds for good plant rate. Seeds are very tiny and delicate. Plant a lot at once.

Purchase twice as many seeds as you think you'll need. Black or tan Stevia seeds: Black seeds, according to Perdue University, weigh more than tan seeds and their viability (rate of germination) is much higher.
Sowing season average temperature is about 24 and 29 Cº. Store in the refrigerator at 4°C = 39.2 F is recommended for this species.
If you are planting in a pot sprinkle a lot of seeds on top of soil and mix lightly into a light weight soil. Spray a mist of water and cover with clear plastic wrap. Keep out of direct sunlight and keep soil moist (not wet). Once you have established sprouts you can introduce them into sunlight. Keep moist, and water from under plant.

[charms53434]