Perennial of the Boraginaceae family, Cerinthe glabra is a species of the mountains of central and southern Europe, present from the Alps to the Carpathians and the Balkans, where it occupies high-altitude megaphorbia, stream banks, cool meadows, and forest edges, generally between 800 and 2,200 meters in altitude.
It forms upright clumps 20 to 50 centimeters in height, with glabrous and glaucous stems, a characteristic that distinctly sets it apart from Cerinthe major, a Mediterranean annual species with fleshier foliage. The leaves are oval to oblong, amplexicaul, bluish-green to glaucous, smooth and slightly waxy to the touch, giving them a matte and particularly elegant appearance.
The flowers are tubular, drooping, pale yellow to yellow-green, sometimes slightly streaked or tinged with purple at the base, grouped in scorpioid cymes characteristic of the Boraginaceae. They are discreet but highly appreciated by bumblebees that skillfully slip in to reach the nectar.
In its natural habitat, flowering extends from June to August depending on altitude.
In cultivation, it prefers a cool, humus-rich, well-drained soil, in a semi-shaded position. It is suitable for woodland gardens or cool rockeries with a natural and mountainous character, and reseeds moderately without becoming invasive.