Peanuts are generally grown in southern climes. Most come from China, India, Nigeria and the southern U.S.
, which all fall squarely in climates in or similar to USDA hardiness zones 8-11 . Which is to say, their summers are long enough to allow for the up to 150 days necessary for the plants to reach maturity. But with some planning, home growers as far north as zone 6 can also have success growing peanuts for snacking, peanut butter and, of course, bragging rights.
If you live in one of those more northern areas, direct sowing isn’t possible, so you’ll have to purchase starter plants or start seeds early indoors (or in a greenhouse, if you have one). Then transplant them outdoors two to three weeks after the danger of frost has passed. With that date in mind, research your first fall frost date and calculate whether there are enough days between them to allow your chosen peanut variety to mature: Valencia takes 90-110 days; Spanish, 90-120; Virginia and runner types, 130-150.
If not, calculate the number of extra days (but no less than 14) they’ll need to develop indoors and start seeds accordingly. Don’t subtract more days because starting seeds too early can result in leggy, stressed plants. In my Long Island, New York, garden, I would aim for an early April start date.
I recommend buying seeds from a specialty garden center or a seed catalog. Yes, you can theoretically crack open raw, unsalted, in-the-shell peanuts from the grocery store and plant them — and if .
