Timing of Termination for Supplemental Replanted Peanut to Maximize Yield and Grade

Abstract

When a peanut field is supplementally replanted next to the established row, it creates a conundrum of when to terminate maturity. This research was conducted to determine whether replanting poor stands of peanut at different populations would affect yield, grade (total sound mature kernels [TSMK]), and pod mass per plant compared to not replanting. The study also assessed whether the timing of termination of replanted peanuts would impact the same variables. The experiments took place in Tifton, GA in 2014, 2016, and 2017. Peanut was initially planted in late April-early May each year and thinned to populations of 13.1, 9.9, 6.6, and 3.3 plants/m of row. The 9.9, 6.6, and 3.3 plants/m populations were replicated and replanted with a supplemental seeding rate of 9.9, 13.1, or 16.4 seed/m for the respective populations. For each replanting, plant termination was made at timings coinciding with optimum maturity of the initial plants, the replanted peanuts, or averaged between those dates. Pooled over years, there was a linear correlation between plant stand and yield in non-replanted populations. Yield was 15% greater at 13.1 plants/m than at 3.3 plants/m. Stand was inversely correlated with pod mass (g pods/plant). Pod mass decreased by 45% when stand increased from 3.3 to 6.6 plants/m and was reduced another 38% when stands increased to 9.9 plants/m, then plateaued. Yield improved by delaying termination beyond the original plant maturity for the lowest initial population. There were also increases in TSMK as termination timing progressed from earliest termination (73%), to average termination (76%), to latest termination (78%). If supplemental replanting occurs, these data suggest delaying termination by digging beyond the optimum maturity of the initially planted plants until closer to the maturity of the replanted plants to allow late developing pods to progress in maturity. However, delaying too long can result in a reduction in average pod mass. Termination at the average maturity between initial and replanted plants can help maximize production and minimize the risk of loss from overmaturing pods.