Growth & Development

Peanut growth and development is temperature dependent, with 86° F being about optimal. High temperatures (over 95° F) slow plant growth and there is little growth below 60° F. Drought stress reduces flower production and pollination, and extreme soil surface temperatures cause peg abortion.

Peanut is an indeterminate plant capable of recovering from drought stress even during the reproductive period to rebloom and produce another crop of pegs. However optimal yields are produced when drought stress is avoided and extreme temperatures are minimized during the critical 60 – 100 DAP interval.

Temperature requirements can be thought of in degree days where the base developmental  temperature (56° F) is subtracted from the average daily temperature and summed over a period of time. As an example, a medium maturity virginia type peanut such as NC-V11 requires about 2700 degree days (DD) after emergence.

Based on the 20-year temperature average shown below for Blackville SC, it takes about 124 days to accumulate 2700 DD if the crop emerges on 10 May. So adding 7 days for emergence, under optimal moisture conditions it takes 131 DAP to mature the NC-V11 variety at Blackville if we plant on 3 May. Many factors influence harvest maturity. Never dig based solely on days after planting. See the harvest maturity section to determine when to dig.