Fourteen spring and winter hard red South African wheat (Triticum aestivumL.) cultivars were compared for their regeneration and transient anthocyanin expression efficiencies. Embryonic and non-embryonic callus, as well as plantlets, were obtained from all the cultivars cultured on a modified Murashige and Skoog basal medium supplemented with 5 mg l−16-Benzylaminopurine. Gamtoos and TugelaDn1were the best cultivars for the development of both roots and shoots. None of the cultivars produced callus or plantlets on ML3 medium. Transient anthocyanin expression was obtained in winter, as well as spring, hard red wheat cultivars. Using the nondestructive anthocyanin reporter-gene, it was established that the spring wheat cultivars PalmietDn1, PalmietDn2and PalmietDn5were the most suitable cultivars for future transformation studies, determined by the percentage bombarded calli expressing anthocyanin after two to three weeks.