Most gardeners have never thought about the option to grow peanuts. Peanuts are one of Americas beloved foods (those with allergies aside), where peanut butter is practically a staple food. And it’s not just kids who love a good ole PBJ sandwich, right?

Peanuts are also the most snacked of all the nuts. We like them just plain, roasted, peanut butter on apple wedges, in celery sticks, in our favorite breakfast oat bake with a little chocolate, and a favorite—more a dessert than breakfast—peanut butter chocolate pancakes!

The good news is that peanuts are not only delicious but have many health benefits too, (so long as you or your family members aren’t allergic to them).

You don’t often hear of folks growing their own peanuts as part of their summer gardening. But the organic peanut butter we buy costs between $4-$9 per 16oz jar. So… it may just be a crop to consider.

So if you love peanuts you may want to give it a try. You can grow peanuts in climates up through Nova Scotia, but you may need some space to plant enough for it to amount to anything.

Benefits of Peanuts

Excerpted from SuperHerbalFoods.com ^[1]https://www.superherbalfoods.com/herbal-remedies/ten-health-benefits-of-peanuts.php

Peanut Nutrients Benefits

• Muscles – B vitamins
• Protein – high protein and iron
• Lowering cholesterol – Vitamin B3-Niacin
• Cancer protection – phytosterols called beta-sitoserol (SIT)
• Depression – Tryptophan, an amino acid producing serotonin
• Memory – Vitamin B3-Niacin, aka “brain food”
• Heart Disease – Oleic acid, an antioxidant, monounsaturated fat
• Fertility – Folate and Folic Acid

How to Grow Peanuts

Here’s a video on how fun it can be to grow peanuts. For more information on growing in a cooler climate check out this manual from the University of Wisconsin – Peanut Manual.^[2]https://hort.purdue.edu/newcrop/afcm/peanut.html

In this video, “ImStillWorkin” shares in detail, how to grow peanuts and what kind to use, such as: the Virginia peanut for an all around good peanut to grow, and how the Spanish and Valencia peanuts best in northern climates.

Important! Do NOT plant peanuts too early or they will mold.

Can You Grow Peanuts in Pots?

One Gardens All Facebook community member, Patrick, said they’d grown them before with success, but, the peanuts seemed to be a bit invasive. Patrick wondered if peanuts could be grown in pots, so we looked into it to be sure and found this from GardeningBlog.com.

Peanuts can be grown in containers, but you need to allow for extra surface space for the pegs to be put down by the plant. Your peanuts should be in pots no smaller than 20 inches across and at least a foot deep. Just one plant per pot.

Keep your plants well-watered but take care not to let the roots get waterlogged. Your containers should drain well.^[3]https://www.gardeningblog.net/how-to-grow/peanuts/

Peanuts to Peanut Butter for Food Storage

Here’s more on growing peanuts from a bag of raw peanuts, then turning those homegrown peanuts into peanut butter, including how the peanuts form and what mistake to avoid.

Yummy! So, if you don’t have wheat grinder, you should be able to make it in a Cuisinart type food processor or Vitamix. Between the two, we prefer the food processor.

My son made almond butter over the weekend. We need to calculate this exactly to be sure, but rough estimates are that it saves about $1 per 16 oz jar to make your own, especially if you can buy the almonds in more of a bulk size.

Our favorite nut butters are peanut, cashew, almond and sunflower.

Homemade Almond Butter

• 3 cups toasted almonds (with skin) (Or nut of choice)
• 1 Tablespoon coconut oil (more if too dry)
• Dash of sea salt (optional)

Let us know if you end up planting peanuts and/or making homemade nut butters.

Wishing you great gardens and happy harvests!