ANNUAL LEGUMES 163 



A compact soil does not facilitate this very necessary process. The peanut 

 is more susceptible to frost than the bean plant. It requires a long season 

 without frost in order to develop nuts. The small Spanish peanuts require 

 about 115 days to mature and the large varieties need a still longer period. 

 For this reason they are most successfully grown in the frost-free regions, 

 such as the South Atlantic and Gulf states and westward into California. 

 When grown for forage, however, a wider range of climate is possible, 

 peanuts being successfully grown as far north as Maryland and Delaware. 



Fertilizers and Lime Required. Soils that are adapted to peanuts 

 will not require much commercial fertilizer, although the peanut responds 

 readily to a moderate use of it. On river bottom lands no fertilizer will be . 

 needed, but in hillside regions applications of fertilizers and lime are advis- 

 able. Practically the same fertilizer that is suitable for potatoes is suitable 

 for peanuts. The peanut responds well to the application of manure, but 

 the manure should be applied to the crop preceding the peanuts. For this 

 reason, peanuts should follow a cultivated crop if possible. This also aids 

 materially in freeing the peanuts from weeds. Too much manure causes a 

 heavy growth of tops to the detriment of the pods. If the forage is fed and 

 returned to the land in the form of manure, the peanut is not an exhaustive 

 crop, but if the entire crop is removed it soon robs the soil of fertility. 



Peanuts also require an abundance of lime in the soil. Soils that show 

 any indications of sourness should receive from 600 to 1000 pounds of lime 

 (preferably fresh burned) to the acre. This treatment should be given at 

 least every five years. The sorrel weed is an indication of a sou* soil. 



The fertilizer may be distributed in the row to be planted and thor- 

 oughly mixed with the soil. Lime should not be applied at the same time, 

 but some time previous, either during the fall before or just after plowing. 



Time, Rate, Depth and Manner of Planting. Peanuts should be 

 planted as soon as the ground is thoroughly warm and all danger from 

 frost is over. This insures quick germination. The larger varieties must 

 be planted somewhat earlier than the Spanish variety, as more time is 

 needed to mature. 



The soil is prepared much the same as that for potatoes. The peanuts 

 are planted in furrows about three feet apart. The nuts may be dropped 

 by hand or a one-horse peanut planter may be used. The running varieties 

 should be planted from twelve to sixteen inches apart in the row but the 

 bunch varieties somewhat closer, from nine to twelve inches apart. The 

 richer the soil, the greater should be the distance between plants, in order 

 to allow for growth. 



Only one seed in a place is necessary, but in order to insure a good yield, 

 two seeds are preferable. Two pecks of shelled peanuts are generally 

 sufficient to plant an acre, while two bushels of the Spanish peanut in the 

 pod are required. 



Peanuts should be covered from three-quarters of an inch to two inches 

 deep, depending upon character of soil. Light, sandy soils require a deeper 



