Even though peanut plants originally come from very warm regions, they can be grown in cooler countries if conditions are good. What you need to pay attention to if you want to grow your own peanuts in the garden or greenhouse.
How do I grow a peanut plant myself?
To successfully grow a peanut plant yourself, you need high-quality seeds, loose garden soil and a sunny location. Grow the plant in a pot or greenhouse and plant it outdoors after frost. Pay attention to moderate watering, avoid waterlogging and fertilize occasionally.
Use the right seeds
It's best to get your peanut seeds from specialist retailers. You can also use the untreated kernels from the supermarket, but these germinate much more poorly.
There are now varieties available from specialist retailers that thrive quite well even in cooler temperatures.
Growing a peanut plant yourself is worth it if you can provide enough light and heat. In northern regions you should only try in the greenhouse.
Prefer peanut plant in pot
Since the peanut plant has a very long growing season, you should prefer the seeds in a pot on the windowsill or in the greenhouse.
Fill it with good, loose garden soil. Make sure that there are enough drainage holes, because peanuts cannot tolerate waterlogging at all.
Cover the seeds with two to three centimeters of soil and place them in a warm and sunny location.
Grow peanut plant under glass
If you are growing the peanut plant in the winter garden or greenhouse, plant it in a larger pot once the plant has developed several pairs of leaves.
If you also want to harvest peanuts, choose a wide, deep bowl. Peanuts grow on the inflorescences that descend into the ground next to the plant.
Watere only moderately and place the peanut plant in as sunny a location as possible. Peanuts thrive particularly well at temperatures around 30 degrees.
Growing peanuts outdoors
- Plant out after frost
- Loose garden soil
- As sunny a location as possible
- Water little
- Avoid waterlogging
- Fertilize occasionally
The peanut harvest
Peanut harvest begins after 100 to 130 days when soil temperatures were consistently high. In the field, peanuts are ready to harvest from September.
Tips & Tricks
If you live in a region with a very mild climate, you can sow the peanut seeds outdoors directly from May. It is important that the soil temperature no longer drops below 18 degrees. Therefore, cover the peanut seeds at night for the first few weeks.
