Growing Peanuts in a Container

Every year I try to grow something new in the vegetable garden. Historically, I've not been a big fan of raw vegetables when it comes to eating them, but I'm getting better about it. A few years ago, I started eating cucumbers because I figured that anything that smelled that good had to taste pretty good, too. I prefer them with dill or ranch dip, but virgin cukes aren't bad either, I've decided.

There are still raw veggies that I don't eat - broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, carrots, tomatoes - but I'll grow some of them because I'm not the only person who lives (and eats) here. I'll grow things just because they're interesting or look pretty, too.

This year, I'm growing peanuts! I don't like peanuts, although I do like peanut butter. (If you haven't figured it out already, I'm a picky eater.) But when I saw peanut plants for sale at Petitti's in Avon Lake, OH, recently, I had to buy some and try growing my own. I've never seen peanuts growing anywhere, so this is all new to me.

I planted them in a pot a few weeks ago and though they were doing fine, I had to move them. Why? Because I hadn't done my homework to see just how to grow peanuts. They grow in a really interesting way. They're a legume, like peas, and when they bloom, they'll have pea-like blossoms on them. Then they'll form "pegs" which will drop down to the soil and dig in. These will become the peanuts, underground.

The first container was too small.

This pegging business means they need more room than my original container could provide for the process. So today I put them in a very large clay pot that had the bottom broken out and sat it in the veggie garden where it could get full sun. The container is still too small, but I'm going to keep a close watch and help direct the pegs into the soil around the plants.

The second container is a bit small too, but larger than the first one.

I'm also growing kohlrabi! My mom says I did try it when I was a freshman in high school when my boyfriend at the time brought some to me from his family's garden. I don't recall that, so kohlrabi must not have impressed me much.

What a difference a few years can make to your tastebuds! Diana, a co-worker, brought some kohlrabi in to work last week and I tried it. I liked it! The texture reminded me a bit of water chestnuts, and the flavor, though unique, gave a bit of a hint of the white part of a hard-boiled egg. Another co-worker said she could taste that, too.

Anyway, I wanted to grow some myself, so I bought some seeds this past weekend and those got planted today. I know that these are more of a cool-season crop, but better late than never, right? If my current planting doesn't do well, I may try again for a fall planting.

I'm growing leeks for the first time, too. Are you growing something new or unusual this year in your vegetable garden?