The name Echium derives from the Greek word for 'viper', referring to the shape of the fruit which resembles the head of a snake.
Echium italicum subsp. biebersteinii (in Crete) is a biennal hairy plant with a pyramidal shape. Found in dry locations, uncultivated fields and alon g roadsides it flowers from March to June from sea level up to an altitude of 1000m. It can be up to one meter tall.
