We begin planting peanuts in early to mid-May each year. We pick up our seed in the seed tender (the machine on the right), then fill up the planter (left).
A few days after planting, the peanut plants begin to emerge, “cracking” through the soil.
Peanuts are legumes - they fruit underground and fix nitrogen in the soil.
A few weeks into the peanuts’ growth cycle, they begin developing flowers. The flowers pollinate themselves, and the peanut ovary begins to form as the petals fall away.
Peanuts require approximately 23 inches of water during the growing season. We supplement rainfall with irrigation to ensure optimal growth.
When the peanuts reach maturity, about 135-145 days after planting, we invert them with a “digger-shaker” (or inverter) to prepare for harvest.
After the peanuts are dug, they undergo a natural drying process. This usually takes about 3-5 days.
After the peanuts have dried, we begin harvesting them with a peanut picker.
The peanut picker collects the whole peanut vine, then separates the peanuts from the plant material. The peanuts remain in the basket on the picker while the vines are deposited on the ground.
Once the picker is full, the peanuts are transferred to the “dump cart,” while the picker continues harvesting.
Once the dump cart is full of peanuts, the cart operator offloads the peanuts into a semi trailer.
Once harvested, our peanuts are transported to the “buying point” where we’ve sold them. From there, they are graded and transported to peanut shellers.