Original: Vinca ( , Sunset Western Garden Book , 1995:606 -- 607 from Latin vincire : '' to bind , fetter '' was once known as pervincaVinca article ) or Periwinkle is a genus of five species in the family Apocynaceae , native to Europe , northwest Africa and southwest Asia .
Simplified: Vinca ( from Latin vincire '' to bind , fetter '' ) is a genus of five species in the family Apocynaceae , that grows in Europe , northwest Africa and southwest Asia .