A reliable protocol for callus induction and regeneration were developed for leaf explants of Artemisia vulgaris L. Percent of callus induction and regeneration were higher in the young leaves. MS medium containing 1.0 mgl -1 BAP and 3.0 mgl -1 NAA is the optimum concentration for induction of callus. So produced callus was subcultured on Murashige -Skoog (MS) medium with 1.0 mgl -1 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP), 3.0 mgl -1 gibberellic acid (GA 3 ) produced the highest mean number of shoots (35.85±0.81) per explant. Half strength of MS was found to be the best for rooting, however, addition of IAA (0.5-1.0 mgl -1 ) was found essential to induce longer roots. More than 84% of the rooted plants were established in polycups after hardening.Keywords: Callus induction, Plant regeneration, Leaf explants, Artemisia vulgaris L IntroductionArtemisia vulgaris Linn, an important perennial medicinal herb belongs to the family Asteraceae. The plant is aromatic, shrubby 0.6-2.4m high and pubescent. The plant has a hot, sharp and pungent taste. It is considered to be a valuable stomachic, deobstruent and antispasmodic. The expressed juice is used in diseases of children. The leaves and shoot tips are administered in nervous and spasmodic affections connected with debility, in asthma and diseases of the brain. It shows antispasmodic and anthelmintic activity (Kirtiker and Basu, 1935).Leaf explants have been employed for regeneration by many researchers observed in Centaurreum erythraea (Baresova et al., 1985); Jatropha integerrima (Sujatha and Dhingra,1993); Solanum pseudocapsicanum (Baburaj and Gunasekaran, 1994); Guizotia abssinica (Jadimath, 1998); Jatropha curcus (Sardana et al. ,2000). The present study describes an optimized regeneration system in Artemisia vulgaris callus derived from leaf explant cultures on a variety of medium composition. Materials and methods Plant materialLeaf explants from 6-month-old mature plant of Artemisia vulgaris L. were used to initiate in vitro cultures. The leaf segments were washed with 5% (w/v) bavistin, 10% (w/v) antibiotic and 5% (w/v) Tween 20 by continuous shaking for 20 min followed by washing in tap water, then rinsed three to five times with double distilled water. Callus inductionTo induce callus, the sterile leaf explants were inoculated on MS Medium, containing BAP (0.5-1.0 mgl Shoot induction and elongationShoots were induced by transferring the leaf calli on MS medium containing different concentrations and combinations of BAP (0.5-1.0 mgl -1 ) and GA 3 (0.5-3.0 mgl -1 ). Elongation of shoots were also observed on the same medium. Rooting and AcclimatizationMicroshoots were excised from the parent cultures and transferred onto half strength MS medium supplemented with different concentrations and combinations of IBA, IAA and NAA for root induction. The rooted shoots were gently removed from the culture vessels, washed under running tap water and transferred to polycups containing sand:soil:vermiculite (1:1:1) in the greenhouse conditions for acclimatization. Results an...