Cytological examination during somatic embryogenesis inIris pumilaL. andIris setosaPall, were performed using light and electron microscopy. The first sign of the cellular differentiation in the initial embryogenic callus (EC; stage 1) of bothIrisspecies was the formation of short and elongated cell types. After the onset of embryogenesis, short cells divided producing a mass of densely packed meristematic cells, closely connected with numerous plasmodesmata. Further differentiation into globular embryos (GE) led to a loss of plasmodesmata and cell separation. In vacuolated elongated cells, cytoplasm was located near the wall and around the nucleus. In both cell types amyloplasts and small mitochondria with poorly developed crystae were abundant.