Not even close.
The peanut is not a nut at all but a member of the legume family. The majority of peanuts are currently grown in the United States, South America, Africa, India, and China. Peanuts do not grow on trees. The peanut seeds must be planted every year after the frost and harvested 4 -5 months later. The peanut plant produces yellow flowers above the ground that fall away, leaving a ´peg´ in their place. Each ´peg´ grows away from the plant like a new stem and extends underground where the clusters of peanuts then develop.
Peanut History in a Nutshell
The peanut is believed to have been originally cultivated in Bolivia and Peru around 3,500 years ago. One can just imagine the Inca priests making their sacrificial offerings while the watching crowd happily munched on peanuts. The Spanish explorers were the first Europeans to bring the peanut back to the Old World in the 16th century. The peanut was taken by the Spanish to Africa and Asia on their ships since it proved to be tasty, highly nutritional and not subject to spoil like other food supplies. Indonesians have made sauces from natural peanut butter since the 17th century ! The peanut is still it an important element in Chinese and other Asian cooking and provides the main source of protein in their diet. The peanut made its way to North America on the slave ships that came from Africa. In 1860 with the start of the American Civil War, the peanut was incorporated into the American diet. Peanut butter was first ´invented´ in America by a doctor from St. Louis, Missouri in 1890 as a way to complement the diet of his patients who needed more nutrition and energy. George Washington Carver is known as the father of the peanut industry since he improved crop production and discovered 300 ways to use peanuts including shoe polish and shaving cream.