\Ster*cu`li*a"ceous\, a. [NL. Sterculia, the
typical genus, fr. L. Sterculius the deity that presided over
manuring, from stercus dung. So called because one of the
original species is fetid.] (Bot.)
Of or pertaining to a natural order ({Sterculiace[ae]}) of
polypetalous exogenous plants, mostly tropical. The cacao
({Theobroma Cacao}) is the most useful plant of the order.