Disclosed are methods for inducing cardiomyogenic differentiation in cells that are competent for differentiation along the cardiomyogenic lineage such as certain unfractionated bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMNCs). In some embodiments, the methods include contacting a plurality of unfractionated, density gradient-separated BMMNCs with a cardiomyocyte differentiation-inducing amount of a Wnt11 gene product for a time and under conditions sufficient to induce cardiomyocyte differentiation in at least a subset of the BMMNCs. Also provided are methods for treating an injury to cardiac tissue in a subject using cells that have been induced to differentiate along the cardiomyogenic lineage, recombinant host cells comprising an expression vector that encodes a Wnt11 polypeptide or a functional fragment thereof, and systems for inducing cardiomyogenic differentiation in a cultured cell.