These are tender subshrubs, biennial and herbaceous plants found in Crete and the Mediterranean region. They belong to the Snapdragon family, Scrophulariaceae. Their leaves are lance-shaped and they bear tall spikes of flowers. Celsia Arcturus can grow 4 feet high. This shrubby perennial bears yellow flowers with purple anthers in the summer. Celsia cretica can grow 5 feet tall. This tender biennial produces yellow flowers in July.

Celsia Arcturus is grown in a greenhouse that has a minimum temperature of 40 degrees. It needs a soil consisting of equal parts of loam and leaf mold with quite a bit of sand added. Repotting should be done in March.

New plants of Celsia Arcturus can be obtained by sowing seeds in pots of sandy soil in a greenhouse having a 55-degree temperature in March. The seedlings should be potted separately into 3-inch pots and, later, into the 5-inch pots in which they'll bloom in late summer. Cuttings of young, 3-inch shoots can be inserted in pots of sandy soil and placed under a bell jar in the greenhouse in March. The biennial kinds can be increased by seeds being sown in light soil in a cold frame in May. Pot the seedlings individually in 3-inch pots and keep them in a frost-proof frame or greenhouse during the winter. They can be planted outside in a sunny spot, in May, where they'll bear spikes of flowers in July.

Celsia Arcturus;
Celsia cretica.