Stevia...and my new Herb Garden

I mentioned my new plants, so here's a picture of them! They look so sweet!

On the far left we have Rosemary, then Sage, black Basil, and Stevia (on the far right).

bottom row is a sad...a sad what...I think it may be of the Orchid Family. Mr A...any hints on how to save it? And then a teeny weeny basil plant (that will be getting a partner soon).

They've completely brought to life the kitchen balcony.

I finally found Stevia plants at a gorgeous plant fair I went to on friday, in Milano. Oh, it was so beautiful! I just felt like buying all the plants, and then buying a house to put them all in! Anyway, these hard-to-find Stevia plants have finally been found, and I just hope I manage to keep them alive. I tasted a leaf even before buying them, and they are soooo sweet. I had to stop myself from picking at them on my way home on the tube. I don't think people usually munch on leaves directly from pot-plants while sitting on a train. Italians are weird: you can get away with having criminals in government, but God forbid you should munch on fresh leaves while sitting in a train!

Anyway, a big prelude to get to the point:

STEVIA: Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni.

It's native of South America, Central America, and Mexico, and it is a natural sweetener. There is lots of controversy about it because it could (and does) substitute sugar, without the ill-effects that sugar has on the human body....read more about it on Wikipedia....

I quote:

"For centuries, the Guaraní tribes of Paraguay and Brazil used stevia, which they called ka'a he'ê ("sweet herb"), as a sweetener in yerba mate and medicinal teas for treating heartburn and other ailments. More recent medical research has shown promise in treating obesity, high blood pressure, and hypertension. Stevia has a negligible effect on blood glucose, even enhancing glucose tolerance; therefore, it is attractive as a natural sweetener to diabetics and others on carbohydrate-controlled diets."