Peanuts!!!

11 years ago

I've been growing peanuts for about 10 years at this location and have accumulated 3 really interesting varieties.

Bramling Pink - from a relative in East Tennessee, this is a relatively large early maturing pink peanut with up to 4 peanuts per shell.

Black - From Lewis Kilgore, a nice medium size early maturing black peanut with very good nutty flavor and usually no more than 3 nuts per shell.

York - From the Florida breeding program, selected for medium-large size, 2 nuts per shell, and very good disease tolerance.

I've watched closely trying to find any bee made hybrids between the varieties and last year was finally rewarded with 3 plants out of several hundred grown.

One was a cross of Bramling Pink X Black which had darker than normal skin on the individual nuts. The seed coat is produced from maternal tissue which means these seed are F3.

From upper left going clockwise, dark reddish black, darkest black, interesting red peanut, original Bramling Pink, center is original black peanut which I have heavily selected for darkest color.

What I find interesting is the red peanuts on the lower right that were not present in either parent. This is a segregating color that comes from removing the dark component and retaining the genes that produce petunidin.

These peanuts were deliberately selected for increased size compared to the parents. They are typically twice as big as the original Black peanuts and about 60 percent larger than the Bramling Pink. They are also selected for increased nuts per shell. Bramling Pink typically produces a large percentage of 4 nuts per shell so I am selecting for this trait in the offspring. The final trait I am selecting is increased total production. Each plant must produce a minimum of forty peanuts in-shell to be included in next year's planting.

I had to re-size this photo to use it on the net so it does not show the size differences very well. Look at the Black peanuts in the center and you can get an idea just how much larger the other peanuts are. The Black peanuts are about 1/2 inch long and 1/4 inch diameter.

This post was edited by fusion_power on Mon, Oct 6, 14 at 0:34

Featured Answer

wertach zone 7-B SC

11 years ago

Annette, "but mine come out of a can :)."

Boiled peanuts? ;) That's the only kind in a can around here! Unless you mean one of those cardboard cans?

Fusion has a good way of parching them, so I'm not knocking his method.

But I learned an almost fool proof way from my dear departed Dad. But the peanuts have to be dry or it won't work!

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees, spread the peanuts in a single layer on a cookie sheet. Place them in the oven after it is heated and turn it off. Once it has cooled the peanuts are usually perfect and no burning!

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Comments (8)

aftermidnight Zone7b B.C. Canada
11 years ago
When I was very young my grandfather grew a row of peanuts in his veggie garden, probably just as a novelty. I can remember trying one raw and wasn't very impressed, I imagine it would have tasted a heck of a lot better roasted. How do you roast yours? Do each of them have notable differences in flavor?Looking at your picture above the size differences are quite impressive. I'd rather eat peanuts than candy any day, but mine come out of a can :).

Annette
fusion_power
Original Author
11 years ago
Annette, do you eat beans out of a can? How do they taste?

The proper way to roast peanuts is in an oven at 325 degrees. Put a single layer of peanuts on a cookie sheet and put it in the hot oven for about 10 minutes. Check to see if they are properly parched, if not , put them in for another 2 minutes.

I also like fried peanuts. Put 1 tablespoon butter in a skillet and get it hot enough to almost burn the butter. Pour in 1 cup of shelled peanuts and stir with a spatula until the peanuts crack and pop. It takes about 3 or 4 minutes to get them to the right temperature. Pour them onto a paper towel to absorb most of the butter and salt ligthly.

Homemade peanut brittle is far better than anything you will ever get at a store. Look up a recipe online that uses baking soda to "fizz" the sugar mix.
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aftermidnight Zone7b B.C. Canada
11 years ago
LOL, I can't remember the last time I ate beans out of a can. I'll have to do that, buy some peanuts, shell them and fry in butter. Not to good for the waistline but what the heck, sounds yummy :).

Annette
naturegirl_2007 5B SW Michigan
11 years ago
Glad to see directions on proper roasting. I grew peanuts for the first time ever this year. They looked bad most of the summer and I figured that a late spring warm up and cooler summer was going to make the crop a complete failure. As I started to clean up the bed I found a few peanuts, so I dug them a bit more carefully. I ended up with more than I had expected, still not much but definitely not a complete failure. It sure was fun to get a harvest from a new-to-me crop, and one that showed up like buried treasure. I felt like a little kid digging through the soil for them. I'll have to roast them soon.
Tracy West
11 years ago
I'd like to try a row or two of peanuts for boiled peanuts. Is it too late in 7b,NC?
wertach zone 7-B SC
11 years ago
I don't know about 7b,NC, but Clemson puts the cutoff date at May 15 here in 7b,SC. However, I have planted them in mid June and they did well. I like to get them in ground around the first of May, but the weather doesn't always cooperate. I plan to plant some this weekend if it is dry enough. I have plenty of space and all I have to loose is a little labor and the seeds are cheap. My garden is very late this year, the weather has been a pita!
fusion_power
Original Author
11 years ago
You won't get as large a crop, but they will still mature some peanuts. Plant them right away if you can, they won't mature until late september.