From Greek apo, “away from;” and kyon or kunos, “dog”: noxious to dogs, for its ancient use as a dog poison
Species
androsaemifolium
With leaves like Androsaemum, which derives from the Greek name Androsaimon, which in turn is derived from andros, “man,” and haima, “blood,” in reference to its blood-red sap or juice
Spreading dogbane is related to milkweeds and, like milkweeds, exudes a milky sap when
leaves and stems are broken. The foreboding name dogbane comes from
its strong toxicity, to people as well as dogs. Dogbane is a North America native plant.
Identification: Plants are shrubby, up to 4' (1.2 m) in height.
Stems are branching, smooth or slightly hairy, round, light green, dark red, or purple.
Leaves are opposite, roughly oval-shaped, with pointed tips and smooth edges, green on top and pale green
below.
Flowers are white to pink or with pink
interiors, about ¼" (6.3 mm) around, tubular
to bell-shaped, with five flared petals. They are fragrant and occur in clusters at the tips of
branches. They
remind me a little of blueberry flowers.
Edibility: Poisonous Potent, intensely bitter alkaloids apocynamarin or cymarin depress heart rate and act on the vaso-motor system.
This photo is looking up from below. · 8/18/2012 · Nashua River Rail Trail, Groton Center, Groton, Massachusetts ≈ 3½ × 3" (9.7 × 7.9 cm)