Perennial of the Boraginaceae family, native to the Balkan Peninsula and Asia Minor, notably present in Crimea, Turkey, and adjacent regions. It occupies limestone rocks, dry stony slopes, and open garrigues in full exposure.
It forms bushy clumps 20 to 40 cm in height, with erect and branched stems, persistent at the base. The leaves are lanceolate to linear, medium green, densely covered with stiff and tuberculate hairs that give them a distinctly hispid texture to the touch, a constant and easily observable characteristic in the genus Onosma.
The flowers are tubular, elongated, distinctly hanging, a bright and clear yellow that immediately distinguishes this species from Onosma with white or pink flowers. They are gathered in scorpioid cymes according to the typical arrangement of the family, and produced in large quantities on all the branched stems. In its natural habitat, its flowering extends from May to July; in cultivation, it can begin as early as the end of April.
It is one of the most easily cultivable and flower-generous species of the genus, which has earned it a regular place in rock garden collections. It requires well-drained soil, calcareous or neutral, poor, in full sun, and dreads prolonged winter humidity. A position on a slope or against a wall suits it perfectly.