Thevetia
(so called after Andr. Thevet, 1502-1590, a French monk, who travelled in Brazil and Guiana). ORD. Apocynaceae. A genus embracing about eight species of glabrous, stove, American shrubs or small trees, extending from Paraguay to Mexico. Flowers yellow, large, in terminal cymes; calyx five-parted, with acute, spreading segments; corolla funnel-shaped, the cylindrical tube abruptly expanded into a campanulate throat, the lobes broad and twisted; stamens inserted at the apex of the tube. Drupe broader than long. Leaves alternate, one-nerved or slenderly penniveined. Three species are known to cultivation. They thrive in fibrous loam. Propagation may be effected by cuttings, inserted in sand, under a bell glass, in heat. T. Ahouai (Ahouai). fl. pale yellow, on thick pedicels; corolla ribbed, with spreading lobes; pedicels thick, as long as the calyx; cymes terminal, contracted, many-flowered. June. l. oblong-obovate, acute, acuminate at base, 4in. long, highly glabrous above, sparsely pilose beneath. h. 20ft. Brazil, 1739. SYN. Cerbera Ahouai (A. B. R. 231; B. M. 737). T. neriifolia (Oleander-leaved). Exile Oil Plant. fl. saffron-yellow, about 3in. long; calyx segments about half the length of the cylindrical part of the corolla, which is one-third the length of its enlarged throat; cymes sub-terminal, much shorter than the leaves, few or sometimes one-flowered. June. l. linear, glabrous, shining above, 3in. to 6in. long. h. 12ft. Tropical America and West Indies, 1735. SYN. Cerbera Thevetia (B. M. 2309). T. Yccotli (Yccotli). fl. similar to those of T. neriifolia, 3in. long; corolla lobes three times the length of the tube; cymes sub-terminal, one to three-flowered. June. fr. green, warted, the size of a small apple. l. narrow-linear, acuminate at both ends, the margins revolute, glabrous above, slightly pilose beneath. h. 8ft. Mexico, 1800.