Peanut harvesting tips

Do you love peanuts? Sure you do. It is a great snack to munch on while watching TV. You can buy peanuts in any supermarket, usually roasted and salted, or even whole with skin and shell. But you can also grow (Arachis hypogaea) at home, and if you do, you will have a great homemade organic snack free of unhealthy oils and salt. We shall give you some useful tips regarding the cultivation of this great plant.

Soil and habitat

First of all, you need to have the right soil. It should be very light and “fluffy”. Best if the soil is also warm. The spot should be protected from wind, but it should get a plenty of sunlight because peanut needs rather worm temperature to grow successfully. Optimal temperature should be around 25°C, and must not drop below 20°C. Greenhouse of some type is probably best in our climate, just to be sure that the temperature will not drop below the threshold.

Photo: Pixabay

Peanuts live underground

Yes they hide underground.Peanuts can drill down to a depth of 6 cm. In this depth nice and hard nuts develop. You can help peanuts with the burrowing process by surrounding stems with soil, but do so only after flowering. You should start pulling the stems out of the ground when the part above the ground turns yellow.This part will dry out. The best way to get the stems out is to use a digging fork, lose them first and then pull them out.

 Photo: Pixabay

What to watch out for

Probably the worst thing is a long rainy weather. If peanut plants are is exposed to high humidity for a long time, they will get mould. You should also reduce watering a little during flowering. Pay attention to the vegetation period, which may last from 120 to 150 days. Do not leave it in the ground any longer. Further, first frosts can also cause major damage.

Preview photo: Pixabay