An experiment was carried out in Leonard jars, in the greenhouse, with nitrogen-free nutrient solution to test the efficiency of 35 strains of rhizobia isolated from 15 species of tropical legumes. Twelve of the tested strains were capable of nodule formation in peanut. Seven of those strains were isolated from the trible Hedysareae, which includes the genus Arachis. Only four of the rhizobia strains with inducing nodulation were effective. Dry weight and number of nodules were not good criteria for evaluating effectiveness.