How Big Does a Peanut Plant Grow?

The peanut (Arachis hypogaea) is a part of the huge plant family of beans which includes beans, soybeans, chickpeas, lentils and peas. All beans are characterized by pods that split open at maturity to reveal at least two seeds. Peanuts develop differently than its cousins, and plants typically grow into 1 to 2 ft tall.

Plant Growth Attributes

The peanut plant starts out from one seed that develops into a plant which grows to almost two feet. Its roots, however, can travel far into the dirt, sometimes as intensely as 3 feet or even more. A peanut plant develops long side branches which become heavy with developing blossoms. Each flower produces a stem, known as a peg, which is the embryo of this developing peanut that rises toward the ground, in which it buries itself and produces a nut. Like its bean cousins, the peanut plant grows erect or as a vine or runner, depending upon the variety. Pegs of this runner peanut emerge along the vines and may spread as far as 3 feet from the main root and therefore are more difficult to harvest mechanically without damaging the plants. Peanuts must remain in the soil for seven to nine weeks to develop their full oil and protein content, says the Purdue University Extension.

Peanut manufacturing

Fertilization on a peanut plant happens when the blossoms have opened and mud is transferred from blossom to blossom by wind or by bee activity. The plant has attained its highest growth of roughly two feet by this time, and turns its vitality concentrate on peg and seed production. Peanuts need always warm temperatures of 56 to 86 degrees F., dry weather and sunlight to develop correctly and do not do well in soil that is too moist. The crops recover quickly from drought wilt, and also their greatest need for water happens as soon as the plants are in the flowering phase. Peanuts do not need overly rich soil, but it needs to be loose to facilitate root and peg growth, enhance water absorption and make harvesting easier.

Harvesting Peanuts

Peanut plants taller than 2 feet tend to be jammed before harvest to generate the buried seeds easier to dig. This procedure is sometimes helped along with a severe frost which kills the majority of the leaves and upper sections of the plants. Runner peanuts require a different way of trimming, since their ground-level Branches frequently grow over every other in the rows and has to be cut back using a coulter that eliminates side growth vertically between the plants. Peanuts has to be dug and allowed to dry and heal for several days. The approach is achieved employing the windrow method that pulls up and shakes the dirt from the peanuts and leaves them in piles on the surface of the dirt. This facilitates air circulation and sun exposure which speed up the curing and drying procedure.

Peanut Uses

Peanuts are a food staple in the U.S. and therefore are consumed roasted as a snack or processed into peanut butter, while in other areas of the planet, they are grown mainly for their petroleum. Smaller lower-growing varieties, like Spanish peanuts, with plants growing to 1 foot or less, are offered as shelled nuts. Taller varieties, like Virginia peanuts, grow to 2 feet and are offered either in or outside of the shells. Runner peanuts produce medium-sized nuts on low plants which grow to a little over 1 foot. They are most often used for peanut butter in the U.S.

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