Plant ID - Stevia?

[Maggiethecat]

Planted a bunch of stuff in this patch last year but not sure what’s what!

The GardenAnswers app suggests Stevia. Does that look right?

Did you plant Stevia? It's not a plant I'm familiar with, seems to be a herb rather than grown for show. It also appears to have toothed leaves, which yours doesn't.

AS a wild guess, could that be a Phlox?

I thought it looked like phlox too.

I doubt stevia is frost hardy anyway.

I’m afraid I cannot recall what I planted in that spot, thought I had left the label in the ground.
I am going to presume it’s not a weed though and leave it!

So much for the GardenAnswers app!!

It's not Stevia. That is potentially quite a dangerous misidentification!

Why dangerous?

Stevia has toothed leaves.
Apps are honestly not a good way to get a positive identification. They just compare your image against a library of images. An app can't evaluate all the features of a plant. They're a starting point though.

If you tried to sweeten something with it but actually it was poisonous!
Hopefully no one would rely on something like this for edibles though.

Picture This app says it’s Phlox.

I find it pretty reliable and not that far out when it gets something wrong.

@ErrolTheDragon - Oh! I suppose if you knew that Stevia was a sweetener.

@Dougt - I’ve tried to get that app for free but no joy.