How come no one grows nor sells peanut seeds?

[897tgigvib]

Oh wow, I didn't know Woolworth's had those. For some reason our family didn't go to Woolworth's enough. We had one in Santa Rosa Ca. Now I wish we would have gone there more.

 

[majorcatfish]

hum that would be fun to grow in a raised bed, will look it the possibilities

 

[Nyboy]

Growing up we had 3 stores withen a few miles of us. Triva founder of woolworths became one of the riches men in the country based on nickel and dime sales.

 

[Kassaundra]

I grew them this past year, just bought raw peanuts they sell for squirrel food. I was planting them for the leaves, I had read they were really good fodder. They didn't do real well at all, they lived but did not thrive. I will try them again though.

 

[Just-Moxie]

Ohh...I loved Woolworths!! But I am from the city...and ours didn't carry peanut seeds. They did serve Coca-Cola though... My mom actually did the peanuts in the coke bottle thing.

 

[thistlebloom]

When I was a kid, Woolworths (a store) sold peanut kits. One peanut seed and smalll lidded plastic container and some cotton. You would soak the cottton put seed on top, then seal container, in a few days seeed would sprout.

Are all the Woolworths gone? I worked at one for a few years before I married. That's how I know I'm not cut out for retail work. ( just not enough dirt in those darn stores...)

 

[TheSeedObsesser]

I grow them here in Australia, my grandparents used to grow them commercially up north in Queensland. Most people don't bother growing them as they can buy cheap peanuts from a store not realizing that there are many types with different flavours and uses.
As the SeedObsesser has stated you can find them online from mail order places.
I find if I save my own seed it is best to save it and replant it soon as the season starts and plant fresh saved seed every year.
Peanuts prefer a warm climate but once again depends on the type chosen as some can be grown in cooler areas that people would consider possible with great success.
Please remember immature peanuts are poisonous, especially to children. I have heard some horror stories from my mother and grandmother that children living near them died from sneaking into fields and eating them while immature.
If you have any questions let me know.

How do you store the seeds? Any kind of soil that they won't tolerate?
How often do you hill the plant up?

We won't be growing peanuts were we live at the moment, plan on waiting until we get a new property. We live in a really wet valley right now, the soil has drainage problems. Despite our garden being a little bit higher any bare soil will have moss growing on it if we get too much rain.

Very excited to grow peanuts though. I think they'd be a hot seller at our vegetable stand and the farmer's markets. That and I read that the greens (young) can be eaten or used for fodder.

 

[Hal]

TheSeedObsesser,
I shelled my seed and while doing so chose nice clean healthy seeds, making sure they were nice and dry and kept them in a paper seed envelope in my seed drawers.
They stayed cool and dry in the drawers. I have been told they keep better still in the shell but to be honest I'd prefer to inspect the seeds so I'm not storing seeds with insects or rot.
I have been told it is also possible to store them in a freezer but I'd recommend contacting an Ag extension in a state that is known for growing peanuts and speak to someone familiar with such a technique.

I never had to hill up my plants as the pegs grow down to the ground and do all the work, that is the beauty of peanuts.

Peanuts like a well drained, preferably loose soil. You need to make sure the soil is worked loose around the plants when the pegs start heading down so they are not hitting a hard surface and getting stopped or delayed. If your in a wet area I'd certainly consider waiting till you have somewhere better.

I'd invest in tracking down multiple varieties, go for whatever is likely to suit your area best and try a few so you can increase your chances of success and finding a winner for your area.

 

[nachoqtpie]

Living in NC, "land o the peanut", I can literally just go to the grocery store and buy raw peanuts in bulk. People around here boil them. They are DELICIOUS that way! Took this Northerner a while to even try them, but when I did I was HOOKED! You just take a big pot, put the whole peanuts in there, fill it with water, and then boil/simmer it for a few hours, adding more water when it gets low. If you ever get a chance to try it, I definitely would! Of course, they sell them canned here... LOL

 

[journey11]

I forget where I got mine from, but we tried growing them this past year. I was told they were easy to grow in pots. I also had some in a raised bed. Total flop--most of them didn't germinate and the couple that did only made like 3 small peanuts a piece. I might look into it further, see if I did something wrong and try one more time. Thought it would be a fun project for the kids.