Does elevated CO2 in warmer climates enhance peanut growth, yield, and quality?

Authors: ADIREDDY, RAJANNA - Oak Ridge Institute For Science And Education (ORISE); Anapalli, Saseendran; Reddy, Krishna; Gowda, Prasanna

Submitted to: Nature Communications
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 7/16/2025
Publication Date: 7/17/2025
Citation: Adireddy, R.G., Anapalli, S.S., Reddy, K.N., Gowda, P.H. 2025. Does elevated CO2 in warmer climates enhance peanut growth, yield, and quality?. Nature Communications. Plant Stress 17 (2025) 100959. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stress.2025.100959.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stress.2025.100959

Interpretive Summary: The rising concentration of carbon dioxide and associated warming in the atmosphere can cause unpredictable effects on crop production systems. When the higher availability of the gas can improve biomass growth, the opposing effects of higher temperature stress can suppress such benefits and compromise production entirely depending on soils and climates. Developing cultivars and management that help withstand the warming climates and produce enough food will be required for sustained crop production. In this direction, information needs to be developed on the performance of crops in future climates. In this study, scientists at the Crop Production Systems Research Unit, USDA-ARS, studied peanut growth and yield using climate-controlled plant growth chambers which simulated climate-model predicted mid and end-century climates. Peanut was grown in the chambers, and climate impacts on production were measured. In future climates, enhancement in biomass growth due to the positive effect of enhanced carbon dioxide in the air was observed. However, the adverse effects of the associated temperature rise resulted in a significant decrease in peanut yield and quality. Developing cultivars with enhanced resilience to temperature extremes may be required to sustain peanut production in the future climates investigated.

Technical Abstract: The interplay between increases in air carbon dioxide concentration (eCO2) and temperature (Ta) and changing water availability presents complex challenges and opportunities for crop production. When the climate is warming from enhanced greenhouse gases in the air, the higher availability of eCO2 can improve photosynthesis and growth; however, such benefits can be overshadowed by the adverse effects of higher temperatures on plant physiological processes, particularly under water-limited conditions. In this context, this pioneering study quantified phenology, shoot and root growth, and seed yield and quality in peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) grown in global climate model (GCM, IPCC Assessment Report 5) projected future climates simulated in climate-controlled plant growth chambers. The climates represented 2024 (CC2024, CO2 at 420 ppm and current Ta), 2050 (PC2050, CO2 at 570 ppm and Ta+3 °C), and 2080 (PC2080, CO2 at 780 ppm and Ta+ 5 °C). Two peanut cultivars (NuMex-01 and Olin) were evaluated with two irrigation levels. Under PC2080, both cultivars exhibited significantly higher root and shoot growth and number of flowers and pegs than CC2024, as reflected in the above-ground biomass increase of 49–94%. However, plants matured ~10 days earlier and significantly reduced kernel yield, pod yield, harvest index, and oil yields by 205%, 161%, 276%, and 694%, respectively. In the PC2050 and PC2080, photosynthetic rates were enhanced during the early crop stage but decreased during the pod development stage than CC2024. Further, peanut seed quality deteriorated under PC2050 and PC2080 by enhancing seed palmitic and palmitoleic acid contents. To summarize, when significant enhancement in biomass growth due to the eCO2 fertilization effect was measured, the adverse effects of associated temperature rise resulted in a significant decrease in peanut yield and quality. Developing cultivars with enhanced resilience to temperature extremes may be required to sustain peanut production in the future climates investigated.