Experimental determination of metastable zonewidth and induction period for 4-dimethylamino-N-methyl-4-stilbazolium tosylate (DAST) is reported. The interfacial tension for different supersaturation conditions has been estimated for the DAST solution at 30°C. The solubility of DAST in methanol has been determined and bulk crystals of dimensions 6×5×2mm3 have been grown by spontaneous nucleation technique with the optimized growth parameters. XRD and FTIR studies confirm the structure and presence of functional groups in the grown crystals. Vicker's microhardness studies carried out on {001} face of DAST crystals reveal that these crystals possess higher hardness values than other organic crystals. © 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.