PEANUTS. 163 



nuts have a tendency to remain in the ground. Spanish is 

 nearly a month earlier than the other varieties. 



Composition of Peanuts and Other Products 

 (Montgomery) : 



Seed from the foUov^^ing varieties grown in South Africa 

 showed an oil content of moisture-free peas as given below : — 



Spanish Bunch 50-05 per cent. 



Tennessee Eed 49-27 



North Carolina 49-96 



Improvement. — Very little breeding work has been done 

 with the peanut. Selection of high-yielding plants with tough 

 peduncles will improve most varieties. 



Climatic and Soil Kequirements. — It is essentially a tro- 

 pical and sub-tropical summer annual legume, and is therefore 

 very susceptible to frost. It requires a comparatively long 

 growing season varying in the time needed to reach maturity 

 from 3^ to 5 months. It does well in areas suitable for citrus, 

 tobacco and cotton. Although moderately drought-resistant, it 

 requires a fair rainfall, with plenty of warm, bright weather. 

 While it is limited to a great extent by the seasonal distribution 

 of rain, the peanut is not likely to be a profitable crop in those 

 areas in South Africa with a high evaporation and a precipita- 

 tion less than 22 inches per annum. 



The crop will grow on any good agricultural soil, but it 

 succeeds best on open, sandy loams, because the highest market 

 quality, i.e., bright shells, is obtained on these. Moreover, 

 these soils are more easily kept in a loose, friable condition 

 necessary for " pegging," and lifting the crop is less laborious. 

 The crop is, however, often profitably grown on heavier types 

 of soil, e.g., on the Springbok Flats. The surfaces of heavy red 

 soils are more difficult to keep friable and frequently stain the 

 pods. 



Peanuts thrive best on calcareous soils, but will also give 

 good yields on those of a somewhat acid character. 



