A-pos-i-na'se-e. L. Apocyn-um + acese, fr. Gr.

from, away, +

a dog - i. e., drives away or kills dogs, hence dogbane. Trees, shrubs. Distinguished by being milky, acrid, poisonous; leaves exstipulate, entire; calyx and corolla 5-lobed; from Asclepiadaceae by stamens being free from style and stigma (insertion on the corolla), and granular pollen, filaments distinct; ovary 2, usually separate; fruit 2 follicles or drupes; tropics; purgative, tonic, febrifuge, poisonous. Genera: 1. Strophanthus. 2. Aspidosperma.

Fig. 315. - Menyanthes trifoliata.