Growing Peanuts....Help

I was out wandering the property today, gathering seeds and ruminating what I was going to do with them. Grow them, sell them, germinate and sell them, spread them around on my land a bit more?

So I ran across that stray peanut again. I thought someone had been eating them and the bag broke and left some strays. And didn't I actually believe peanuts grow on trees?

Well, I know differently now. We discovered some peanut plants here on the land and today I dug some up, also known as "harvested". I have parrots here in the house and they love peanuts. I was thinking I could grow them for my birds.

Anyone know how? Do I take the 2 peanuts out of each shell and plant them straightaway or is there another "proper" way to do it?

Then, to make them more edible for my parrots, without salt, do I bake them?

I sure got a lot to learn here and could use your help.

Thanks,
Molly
:^)))))

Molly I found this and thought it may help. Though I don't now your growing seasons.
We only grew them once. And I was busy with road construction mechanic and was hardly ever home. but I did help the little runners along by covering them and that helped in keeping the soil loose. However since I was gone a lot, the weeds kind of took over and naturaly no bumper crop. Russ

Growing Peanuts in the Home Garden
Peanuts (Arachis hypogaea) are an important field crop in the southeastern United States. In 1995, peanuts were grown on 1.5 million acres in the United States. and produced a crop of 3.5 billion pounds. Peanut seeds (kernels) are used for peanut butter, oil, flour, roasted peanuts, and other food products. While they are not widely grown in Iowa, their unique growth habit makes them a fun addition to the home garden.
Peanuts are also known as goobers, goober peas, groundpeas, ground nuts, and earth nuts. The peanut is a legume with compound leaves similar to clover and yellow, pea-like flowers. Peanut varieties can be classified by growth habit (bunch or runner) and nut type (Virginia or Spanish). Virginia types are large podded and usually contain 1 or 2 large kernels per pod. Spanish types are smaller podded and contain 2 or 3 small kernels per pod.

Peanuts grow best in loose, well-drained soils. Avoid poorly drained, clay type soils. Plant peanuts after the danger of frost is past. Peanuts require a soil temperature of 65°F for germination. Sow peanut seeds 1 to 1 1/2 inches deep and 6 to 8 inches apart. Row spacing for bunch types should be 24 inches and 36 inches for runner types. Suggested varieties for home gardens include 'Spanish,' 'Early Spanish,' 'Virginia Improved,' and 'Jumbo Virginia.' Peanuts are warm-season annuals that require a minimum of 120 frost free days to reach maturity.

The flowering and fruiting of peanuts are unique. Plants flower above ground, but the pods develop below ground. Peanut plants begin to bloom about 30 to 40 days after emergence. The flowers are small, bright yellow, and pea-like in appearance. After pollination and fertilization occurs, the stalk (peg) below the fertilized ovary elongates and curves downward. It takes about 10 days for the peg to penetrate into the soil. A week after soil penetration, the peg tip enlarges and pod and seed development begin. The fruit mature in 9 to 10 weeks with favorable temperatures and moisture conditions. Since the peanut plant flowers over several weeks, all the pods do not mature at the same time.

Cultivate the soil around peanut plants to control weeds and to keep the soil loose so the pegs can easily penetrate the soil surface. Cultivate shallowly to prevent damage to the peanut roots. Stop cultivation in the immediate vicinity of the plants when the pegs begin to penetrate into the soil. A 1 or 2 inch layer of mulch can be placed around plants in early June to control weeds. Any weeds that do appear can be hand pulled.

Harvest the peanuts when the foliage begins to yellow in late summer or early fall. Dig up the plants with a spading fork and carefully shake off the loose soil. Cure the peanuts by hanging the plants in a warm, dry shed or garage. Beware of mice. After the plants have dried for 1 or 2 weeks, shake off any remaining soil and pull the peanut pods from the plants. Continue to air dry the peanuts for an additional 1 or 2 weeks. Once dried, place the peanuts in mesh bags and store them in cool, well-ventilated place until roasted.

This article originally appeared in the May 2, 1997 issue, p. 56.


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Prepared by Richard Jauron, Department of Horticulture
Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.
This information subject to a usage policy. [Search]
[Horticulture and Home Pest News]
[Integrated Pest Management]

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Last updated 12/23/97 by John VanDyk
http://www.ipm.iastate.edu/ipm/hortnews/1997/5-2-1997/peanuts.html

There are many more sites as well. Just google type in" growing peanuts".
There several sites that may even be better, Good luck

Thanks Russ, I appreciate your help. I'll google some more about the processing.

Hmmm, I just thought, "boiled" peanuts. I wonder if my parrots would mind sharing with me.

:^)))

Parrots may prefer them raw. Russ's article is right on the money. We are of course in better peanut growing country and can grow all types Spanish, Valencia, Virginia,and runner types. Georgia does mostly runner types for peanut butter.

Farmerdill,

When you plant the peanut, do you plant the entire shell or take out the meat and plant that? Also, do the seeds need to be dried first before you plant them?

Molly
:^)))

Molly, they should be treated just like a dry shell bean, except they need the spacing of pole bean. Yes should be shelled and they do need to dry. something we don't usually think about because peanuts from this years crop are planted next year, giving more than adequate time to dry.

OOOOOOOOOOO molly. green peanuts. very hard to come by anywhere but in central florida. I will help you plant. I will help you dig. I just really would like a supply of green peanuts so i can boil those suckers. You can sell them to wards. Heck you can sell ay vegetables to wards. O how exciting. all you need is a sandy patch. Only nice small regualr green peanuts work for boiling. Well unless you like mealy and mushy,

gardenglory:

http://www.whitleyspeanut.com/rawpeanut/

I love raw peanuts, too ;-) This place is a favorite stop of both my sons on their 'adventure days' with Grandma & Aunt. Their peanut butter fudge is pretty good, too - especially to my boys...