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Nuts vs Peanuts

The major difference between nuts and peanuts is that nuts grow on tress whereas peanuts grow underground. Nuts are also called tree nuts and peanuts are legumes.

According to botany, a nut is a shell-covered fruit of a plant or tree. The inner part in the hard shell is called kernel which is edible. The nut is hard, one-seeded or at the most may have two seeds would not split open to scatter its seeds when matured. On the other hand, the peanut pods have multiple seeds found in a single legume. It is easy to split open to scatter its seeds when matured. Nuts are indehiscent whereas legumes are dehiscent.

Another major difference between nuts and seeds is that nuts are not attached to the ovary wall and legumes usually have multiple seeds attached to the ovary walls of their pods. In this context, it is unclear whether peanut is a nut or a legume because the pod of the peanut is dehiscent whereas the seed is not at all attached to the ovary wall which is quite similar to the nuts. The identity of the peanut has always remained in a crisis whether it is nut or a legume. As it is readily apparent in the name, however, peanuts are definitely legumes.

Peanuts are ideally used for crop rotations as they replace and replenish nitrogen in the soil. Peanuts unlike the tree nuts grow underground just like potatoes. Most of the nuts such as almonds or walnuts have a lower content of saturated fats as compared to peanuts. Nuts provide a good deal of proteins and they become an excellent fuel source because of their unmodified fats. They regularize blood lipids and provide protection against cardiovascular deterioration.

There are a number of varieties of peanuts such as Spanish peanuts or Virginia peanuts. They have more bioflavonoid in particular as compared to nuts and they are also rich with vitamins and other important nutrients for good health. In the case of a tree nut, they include a variety of nuts such as hazel nuts, almonds, cashews, hickory, pecans, walnuts etc.

Another difference in the nuts and peanuts is that they both have different compositions and fundamental biological differences which cause nuts and legumes to be labeled separately. Peanuts are grown as annual crops in various parts of the world such as India, China and in the tropical region of Africa.

Summary:

1. Nuts are nuts but peanuts are legumes.

2. Nuts grow on trees whereas peanuts grow underground like potatoes.

3. Nut is indehiscent whereas peanuts are dehiscent.

4. Peanuts have mono saturated fats and they have bioflavonoid.

5. Nuts are good for blood regularization and they serve as protection against cardiovascular deterioration.