Agricultural Research and Educat Center
Jay, Florida 3256_5 2 \
Jay, AREC Research Report WF85- August, 1985
Perennial eanuts ,g r west Flo ida
S. DunY 0O
The perennial peanut which is t entifically as Arachis glabrata Benth.
has been under observation in Flor a for many years. Drs. Hull and Carver of the
Agronomy Department of the Florida Agricultural Experiment Station used A. glabrata
in the first recorded trial of interspecific hybridization in the genus, Arachis,
when they attempted to cross A. glabrata with the cultivated peanut, A. hypogaea L,
No hybrid seed were recovered (2, 3). According to Gregory and Gregory (2) the
genus Arachis "evolved on the essential limitations of the ancient Brazilian Shield
and its drainage basins, where it is still naturally confined in the countries of
Brazil, Bolivia, Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina." The perennial peanut was first
put under observation at AREC, Jay (then known as the West Florida Experiment
Station) on 30 July 1963 when 1/4 acre on the north end of pasture 54 was set to
Arachis glahrata, P.I.118457, which. later was released by the Soil Conservation
Service as the cultivar 'Arb'. These peanuts were set in rows on 36" spacing on
pasture 54E and on 18" spacing on pasture 54W. Furrows were opened in the mowed-
off Pensacola bahiagrass sod with a six-inch shovel behind a sharp straight-up
coulter. Rhizomes were dropped 2-3 inches deep in the furrow, the sod was replaced,
and the area cultipacked. A few peanuts were up by 15 August 1963 but never made a
very good stand and a year later were still very scattered and received a rather
unfavorable report (1). Of course this was neither the time of year nor the
preferred method of establishing a perennial peanut stand. A stand should be
established during the winter, and grass should be planted into a peanut stand
rather than the peanut into grass.
The Cultivar, 'Florigraze'.
Following this early unfavorable experience with perennial peanut, the first
plantings of Dr. G. M. Prine's selection out of Arb, which later became 'Florigraze'
rhizoma peanut, were made at this station in 1966. Rhizoma peanuts are those with
underground stems or rhizomes. General observations were made for the next four
years and, in 1970, a replicated trial containing Arb, Arblick, and Florigraze,
then known as GS-1, was established. The planting was made in August, 1970 which
is not the recommended time; however, we planted with. good soil conditions and
could have irrigated if necessary. Fair stands were observed in 1971; however, the
plots were not harvested until 1972. Data were obtained for five seasons before
Florigraze was released C4) under the leadership of Dr. Gordon M. Prine, and these
data are shown in Table 1. They show Florigraze to be superior to Arb and Arblick.
The Cultivar, 'Arbrook'.
In February of 1976, the perennial peanut cultivar 'Arbrook' was established
in a replicated trial. Florigraze was also included in this trial and data are
presented in Table 2.
In 1976, Arbook yielded 1.5 times more dry matter than Florigraze with relative-
ly low yields for both cultivars in this establishment year. In 1977, Florigraze
1Associate Professor of Agronomy.
yielded more than Arbrook at each harvest for a total of 1.2 times more dry matter
than Arbrook. These 1977 yields were exceptional. Arbrook failed to come back
following the winter of 1977-78 and had only a 5% coverage in July. Some minimum
temperature comparisons are given in Table 3 and these do not indicate that the
winter in which Arbrook was lost was much colder than the preceding winter. In
fact, much lower minimums were observed in January of 1977; however, Arbrook did
fail to come back in the spring of 1978. The release circular is due out on
Arbrook in the near future; however, Florigraze would be preferred over Arbrook in
Northwest Florida.
Perennial Peanut and Grass.
In December, 1979 the Florigraze rhizoma peanut was established in rows on a
3' spacing on an Orangeburg sandy loam soil (Typic Paleudult). The peanut stand was
allowed to develop through 1980 and, in May, 1981, plots of Tifton 44 bermudagrass
and Floralta limpograss were set out in rows between the original peanut rows, and
Pensacola hahiagrass was seeded between the original peanut rows. Four replications
of each grass were established in the trial area. Growth was sufficient to make a
harvest in August, 1981, and data for this harvest and for two harvests in 1982
are shown in Table 4. These plots were harvested four times in 1983 and four times
in 1984. They have been harvested one time to date in 1985 and are presently due for
harvest. Digestibility and crude protein data from 1982 are given in Table 5 and
crude protein data from 1983 are presented in Table 6. Dry forage yields from 1984
are presented in Table 7. They show that, although slightly higher average yields
were obtained from the bahiagrass and peanut, these were statistically significant
only at the July harvest. These total forage yields are only fair and can be
loosely compared with those for Tifton 44 and Floralta in a fertility trial by
observing the data in Table 8. The data in Table 8 show the value of nitrogen in a
balanced fertility program in increasing the yield of grass forage. Fertilizer for
this grass and peanut trial has only included a spring application of 300 pounds
per acre of 8-24-24. If more nitrogen had been added, the grass yields could probably
have been increased; however, the peanut yields would have been decreased in all
likelihood. The severe cold of January, 1985 when temperatures reached a low of
3 and 50 F on 21 and 22 January apparently severely damaged the limpograss stand
in this trial and a significantly lower yield was obtained from limpograss and
peanut in June, 1985.
Ryegrass or Rye Over Perennial Peanut.
It is possible to obtain a cool-season yield of forage from the peanut area by
seeding ryegrass, rye, or other small grain or a combination over the peanuts after
the peanut forage has been killed by frost. Mowing immediately after a killing frost
and removing the forage leaves the area in condition for seeding. In trials at
AREC, Jay we have seeded rye alone at 112 pounds per acre, ryegrass alone at 20
pounds per acre, and mixtures of rye at 70 pounds per acre with ryegrass at 15 pounds
per acre. We have broadcast these seed by hand on these small plots and the first
year we planted we disked lightly following seeding and then cultipacked. In
succeeding years we have not disked; however, we have still obtained acceptable
stands. We normally apply a complete fertilizer such as 300 pounds per acre of
8-24-24 and several applications of ammonium nitrate on the cool season forage.
Data from some of these trials are presented in Table 9 and show yields somewhat
lower than would be expected from these crops planted earlier on a good seed bed.
Data in Table 10 show yields of peanuts following the cool-season crops and these
data, which are for 1984, indicate somewhat lower yields from the peanuts than were
obtained in the early cultivar trials. Similar data are shown in Tables 11 and 12
for a trial in which ryegrass alone was present over the peanuts and which produced
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a higher total season yield than either rye or a rye and ryegrass mixture. In this
trial, peanuts where no cool-season crop was grown did not produce more total
forage than peanuts where rye was grown and only a very slight amount more than
where either rye and ryegrass or ryegrass were grown.
In summary we might say that the perennial peanut has a degree of usefulness
and versatility for Northwest Florida. It can be used on sandy soils. It is useful
as a hay crop alone or could be used in mixtures with grasses for hay or pasture.
It is a long-lived perennial; however, it is rather slow to establish. It is
generally acceptable to livestock as a feed and is of good quality with relatively
high protein content and digestibility. Being a legume, it does not require
nitrogen fertilization. Forage yields may not be as high as we would like, but there
is a potential for a reasonable yield of dry matter from the cultivar 'Florigraze'.
Research will continue on management and cultivar development of perennial peanuts.
References
1. Dunavin, L. S. 1965. Evaluation of introduced and native plant species for
pasture, forage, and other uses. Florida Agric. Exp. Stn. Ann. Rept.
p. 398. 1965.
2. Gregory, M. P. and W. C. Gregory. 1979. Exotic germ plasm of Arachis L.
interspecific hybrids. J. Hered. 70:185-193.
3. Hull, F. H. and W. A. Carver. 1938. Peanut improvement. Florida Agric. Exp.
Stn. Ann. Rept. p. 39-40. 1938.
4. Prine, G. M., L. S. Dunavin, J. E. Moore, and R. D. Roush. 1981. 'Florigraze'
rhizoma peanut a perennial forage legume. Fla. Agric. Exp. Stn. Cir.
S-275.
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Table 1. The dry matter yield, protein content, and in vitro digestion of three
rhizoma peanut cultivars at Jay Agricultural Research Center over five
growing seasons.
Cultivar
Florigraze
Arb
Arblick
Florigraze
Arb
Arblick
Growing Season
1972 1973 1974 1975 1976
---------dry matter hay yield (tons/A)t--------
3.0 2.6 3.8 3.8 4.0
1.2 0.9 1.4 1.4 0,9
1.3 1.2 1.9 2.5 2.7
----------------% crude protein---------------
-- 16.4 13.3 14.0
-- --- 11.2 8.9 10.3
-- 14.7 13.3 10.8
5-Season
Average
3.4
1.2
1.9
14.6
10.1
12.9
--------------------% IVOMD*-------------------
Florigraze -- --- 69.2 64.4 66.1 66.6
Arb --- --- 62.4 58.0 59.9 60.1
Arblick --- --- 64.2 64.5 62.2 63.7
tThis experiment was planted in August 1970 and was cut twice annually as hay.
To convert tons per acre (tons/A) to metric tons per hectare (t/ha), multiply
tons/A by 2.24.
4% IVOMD = % of organic matter in sample which was digested.
From Fla. Agric. Exp. Stn. Cir. S-275 (Table 4).
Table 2. Dry matter, protein
peanuts. AREC, Jay.
1976
July 14
August 30
Season Total
1977
July 11
September 26
Arbrook
Florigraze
Arbrook
Florigraze
Arb rook
Florigraze
Arb rook
Florigraze
Arbrook
Florigraze
content and IVOMD of Arbook and Florigraze rhizoma
1976-1977.
Dry Matter Crude Protein IVOMD
tons/acre % %
2.0 13.9 67
1.2 15.2 69
1.4 14.8 70
1.0 14.9 69
2.3
2.8
3.7
4.2
11.2
12.7
14.1
14.8
Season Total Arbrook 6.0
Florigraze 7.0
NOTE: The above experiment was terminated in 1978 because of what appeared to
be winter kill of Arbrook. The coverage of peanut in plots on July 7,
1978 was 80 and 5% for Florigraze and Arbrook, respectively.
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i I i l I
Table 3. A comparison of some average minimum temperatures in 1977 and 1978 at
ARC, Jay.
Average Minimum Temperature
1977
30.3
37.8
51.9
1978
33.1
34.2
45.3
Lowest Minimum Temperature
oF
1977 1978
10 20
25 23
32 27
Numberof Minimums Below 320
1977 1978
17 18
Table 4. Percent botanical composition and
Florigraze rhizoma peanut at ARC,
August 24, 1981
Total
Grass Peanut Weed dry matter
dry matter yield of three tropical grasses and
Jay, FL...
June 16, 1982 August 30, 1982
Total Total
Grass Peanut dry matter Grassi Peanut dry matter
--.-1--.-% --- ---lbs/A-- ------%---- -lbs/A-- -----%--- ---bs/A--
Floralta
limpograss 59 35 6 4810a* 19 81 4140a 59 41 6100a
Pensacola
bahiagrass 61 36 3 4280a 11 89 3470a 29 71 4620b
Tifton 44
bermudagrass 54 40 6 3640a 23 77 3920a 36 64 4690b
Multiply lbs/A by 1.12 to convert to kg/ha.
*Yields for a harvest date followed by the same letter are not significantly different at
P = 0.05 by Duncan's multiple range test.
Table 5. In vitro organic matter digestibility and crude protein of rhizoma
peanut and grasses at AREC, Jay in 1982.
Pensacola bahiagrass + peanut
Tifton 44 bermudagrass + peanut
Floralta limpograss + peanut
Pensacola bahiagrass + peanut
Tifton 44 bermudagrass + peanut
Floralta limpograss + peanut
IVOMD
16 June 30 August
64.5 58.3
59.9 57.0
62.3 56.9
IVOMD
%
16 June
11.6
10.9
9.2
30 August
9.7
9.4
5.7
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Month
January
February
March
Month
January
February
March
Month
January
February
March
----
Table 6. Crude protein in separated samples of grass and peanut at AREC, Jay in
1983.
Crude Protein
Forage 7 July 19 August 17 November
Pensacola bahiagrass 9.2 6.7 8.6
Tifton 44 bermudagrass 10.4 8.2 6.9
Floralta limpograss 8.7 .- 6.1 7.5
peanut from bahiagrass mix 17.2 16.2 15.7
peanut from bermudagrasss mix 17.6 15.0 15.8
peanut from limpograss. mix 16.5 16.8 15.9
Table 7. Dry forage yields of rhizoma peanut and grass at AREC, Jay in 1984.
... Dry Forage
Pounds Per Acre
Forage 29 May 5 July 22 August 15 November Total
Pensacola bahiagrass + peanut 2150a 2380a 2820a 810a 8160a
Tifton 44 bermudagrass + peanut 2000a- 1730b 2730a 630a 7090a
Floralta limpograss + peanut 1780a 1680b 2510a 690a 6660a
Means followed by the same letter are not significantly different at the 5%
level of probability according to Duncan's multiple range test.
Fertilizer: 300 lbs./acre of 8-24-24 on 19 April.
Table 8. Dry forage yields of Tifton 44 bermudagrass and Floralta limpograss
at varied fertility levels at AREC, Jay in 1984.
Dry Forage
Pounds Per Acre
Fertility level Tifton 44 Floralta
Low 4,830 8,860
Medium 9,850 11,660
High 14,650 17,330
t(100, 200, and 400 lb./acre of N in a 2-1-1 N-P205-K20 ratio).
Table 9. Yield of dry forage from rye and ryegrass overseeded over perennial
peanuts at AREC, Jay. 1984.
Dry Forage
Pounds Per Acre
Crop and Sequence 14 Mar. 9 Apr. 7 May Total
Rye and ryegrass over peanut 900 1500 800 3200
Rye and ryegrass over no peanut 650 1790 750 3190
Rye over peanut 1040 1470 540 3050
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Table 10. Yield of peanut forage following rye and ryegrass at AREC, Jay. 1984.
Dry Forage
Pounds Per Acre
Crop and Sequence 7 May 26 June 28 Aug. 15 Nov. Total
Peanut following rye and ryegrass 590 2110 1260 250 4210
Peanut following rye 540 2320 940 170 3970
Table 11. Yield of dry forage from rye and ryegrass overseeded over perennial
peanuts at AREC, Jay. 1984.
Dry Forage
Pounds Per Acre
14 Mar. 9 Apr. 7 May Total
Ryegrass over peanut 590 2910 970 4470
Rye and ryegrass over peanut 1100 2330 770 4200
Rye over peanut 1230 1530 390 3150
Table 12. Yield of peanut forage following rye and ryegrass at AREC, Jay. 1984.
Dry Forage
Pounds Per Acre
Crop and Sequence 7 May 26 June 28 Aug. 15 Nov. Total
Peanut following rye 360 2240 1100 240 3940
Peanut following no cool season crop 360 1810 1020 180 3370
Peanut following rye and ryegrass 430 1500 1130 190 3250
Peanut following ryegrass 360 1470 900 190 2920
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