agriculture Article Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni) as a Multifunctional and Sustainable Crop for the Mediterranean Climate Clarissa Clemente 1 , Luciana G. Angelini 1,2 , Roberta Ascrizzi 3 and Silvia Tavarini 1,2,* 1 Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, Via del Borghetto 80, 56124 Pisa, Italy;
[email protected] (C.C.);
[email protected] (L.G.A.) 2 Interdepartmental Research Center “Nutraceuticals and Food for Health”, University of Pisa, Via del Borghetto 80, 56124 Pisa, Italy 3 Department of Pharmacy, University of Pisa, Via Bonanno 6, 56124 Pisa, Italy;
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[email protected] Abstract: Stevia rebaudiana (Bertoni) is a promising medicinal and aromatic plant for Mediterranean agroecosystems given its positive agronomic attributes and interesting quality features. It has both food and pharmaceutical applications, since its leaves contain sweet-tasting steviol glycosides (SVglys) and bioactive compounds, such as phenolics, flavonoids, and vitamins. We evaluated the agronomic and qualitative performances of nine stevia genotypes cultivated, in open field conditions, for two consecutive years under the Mediterranean climate of central Italy. Growth, biomass production, and accumulation of bioactive compounds (SVglys, polyphenols, and their related antioxidant activities) were evaluated, considering the effect of harvest time and crop age (first and second year of cultivation). The results showed high variability among genotypes in terms of both morpho-productive and phytochemical characteristics. In general, greater leaf dry yields, Citation: Clemente, C.; Angelini, L.G.; Ascrizzi, R.; Tavarini, S. Stevia polyphenol accumulation, and antioxidant activities were found in the second year of cultivation, rebaudiana (Bertoni) as a harvesting the plants in full vegetative growth.