The genus name Amaranthus comes from the Greek for "unfading," and while most members of the family justify that through seed longevity, Amaranthus tricolor earns it through sheer chromatic persistence. This annual from tropical Asia and Africa is grown almost entirely for its foliage, which intensifies rather than fades as the season progresses. The lower leaves stay a modest green, but toward the upper portions of a plant that can reach five feet tall, the colors break into vivid patches — cultivars carry gold, scarlet, and rich copper-orange in overlapping zones. The specific epithet means three-colored, though in practice the palette often exceeds that count. It grows 18 inches to five feet tall depending on conditions, and spreads 12 to 24 inches across.

In parts of Asia, Amaranthus tricolor is grown as an edible crop, the young leaves cooked as greens or eaten raw — known variously as Chinese spinach, callaloo, and tampala depending on the culinary tradition. In temperate gardens it performs as a tender annual sown after all frost has passed, reaching its most vivid coloring in late summer heat. Give it full sun for the most saturated foliage, though afternoon shade in hot climates prevents stress and maintains the colors longer. Moist, well-drained soil suits it well; overly wet conditions invite root rot, and heavy fertilization can actually dull the very display the plant is grown for. Plant 12 to 24 inches apart and let the architecture of the stems do the work.