570 



THE FARMERS HANDBOOK. 



PEANUTS. 



Practically nothing has been done on a commercial scale with regard to the 

 cultivation of peanuts in Australia. Tn New South Wales the first intro- 

 duction of American varieties by the Department of Agriculture was 



made in 191 1', since 

 which year they have 

 beengivena thorough 

 trial and have proved 

 beyond doubt that 

 they are eminently 

 suitable for our cli- 

 mateandsoils. Excel- 

 lent yields have been 

 obtained, and when 

 their commercial 

 value is thoroughly 

 realised and the 

 proper labour-saving- 

 implements have been 

 obtained, &c, there 

 should be a big future 

 for the crop in New 

 South Wales, Queens- 

 land, and Victoria. 

 We should at least 

 endeavour to produce 

 the £30,000 worth 

 of nuts annually 

 imported from China 

 and Japan to supply 

 the local domestic 

 demand. 



Although peanuts 

 are usually regarded 

 only as the roasted 

 article, this isonly one 

 form in which they 

 are used. They 

 feature very exten- 

 sively in the manu- 

 facture of confections and food products. It is, for example, one of the 

 most important of the world's oil products, the United States alone utilizing 

 nearly 1,000,000 gallons annually in the manufacture of oleomargarine. 



As a farm product it is of considerable importance, for the entire plant is 

 almost a balanced ration, being rich in protein, carbohydrates, and fat. 

 Again, it is a legume and its rootlets contain tubercles of various sizes. 

 These tubercles or nodules contain myriads of microscopic organisms 

 (rhizobia), which have the power of collecting the free nitrogen of the 

 atmosphere and storing it within the tubercle, where it can be utilised by 

 the plant or may supplement the nitrogen content of the soil. For this 

 reason the peanut is a most desirable crop for soil renovating or improvement. 



The Peanut Plant showing bacterial nodules. 



