Yesterday we harvested our 1/4 - 1/2 acre or so of peanuts. (Sorry we forgot to take pictures). The land was loaned to us. We planted, cultivated, weeded, and harvested. It was a total family effort.
Traditionally, after the peanuts are harvested, the whole plant is hung on poles with the peanuts hidden by the foliage for several weeks to dry. The nuts need to be sheltered from the sunlight or they will turn brown. We are hanging the peanut plants from the rafters in my shop and the small barn. This makes almost everything in there most inaccessible.
It took all day to pull, bundle and hang.
In the South, boiled peanuts are popular. You boil peanuts in salt water from some 9 hours. However, if you have green peanuts (those just harvested) it only takes about 4 hours.
I'm not crazy about boiled peanuts, but some of the boys are, so we may try our hand at some.
The lack of rain really cut the yield of nuts-probably by about 50%. But we still have a lot. The back of my pickup was overflowing with the bundles.
And the hay from the peanuts is almost as valuable as the nuts. The hay is especially nutritious for cows or hogs.
Oremus pro invicem!
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