How to Grow Peanuts in a Tire

Prepare for Planting

• 1

  Locate and purchase green peanuts; only unprocessed peanuts will grow. These are sometimes available at the grocery store or at home and garden centers.

• 2

  Choose a sunny location. Peanuts grow best with heat and sunshine. Remove weeds and rocks from the area where the tires will be placed.

• 3

  Cut old tires away from the rim with a saw.

• 4

  Place the tires, 2 high, on the prepared area.

• 5

  Fill tires with a mixture of sandy soil and organic compost. Layer the bottom with organic compost and the top with sandy garden soil.

Planting and Care

• 6

  Plant the peanuts 7 inches apart. A layer of bonemeal can make peanuts produce more abundantly. Top with a thin layer of organic mulch.

• 7

  Water thoroughly. Do not water again until growth appears.

• 8

  Top with another layer of sandy soil when plants are 4 inches high. This encourages more root growth.

• 9

  Harvest peanuts by digging them from the soil. Peanuts develop on pegs, growing from the blooms. After flowers are pollinated peanuts grow downward into the soil, to a depth of 2 to 3 inches. Peanut crops take 100 to 150 days until maturity. Remove the whole plant and hang it upside down after harvesting, with peanuts attached, until dry.