The peanut is a species in the legume family native to South America, Mexico and Central America. It is an annual herbaceous plant growing 30 to 50 cm tall. The leaves are opposite; pinnate with four leaves each leaflet 1 to 7 cm (⅜ to 2¾ in) long and 1 to 3 cm (⅜ to 1 inch) large. The flowers are a typical pea flower in shape, 2 to 4 cm across, yellow with reddish veining. After pollination, the fruit develops into a legume 3 to 7 cm long, containing 1 to 4 seeds, which forces its way underground to mature.
Peanuts are known by many names, including earthnuts, ground nuts and monkey nuts; that is often used to mean the entire shell. The domestic peanut is an amphidiploid; it means it has two sets of chromosomes from two different species. The peanut was introduced to China by in the 1600s and another variety by American missionaries in the 1800s. Peanuts grow best in light and sandy soil. The necessary environment is five months of warm weather, and an annual rainfall of 500 to 1000 mm.
Edible peanuts are two-thirds of the total peanuts in the United States. Popular confections include Raw Spanish Peanuts, Raw Virginia Peanuts, Cajun Virginia Peanuts, and shelled Chopped Peanuts.
Dried Fruits like peanuts are great sources of proteins and vitamins.
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