Botanical name: Gomphrena globosa
Globe Amaranth or Bachelor's buttons is an annual bedding plant that grows 1-2 ft tall with a spread of about 1 ft. The branched stems are erect and stiff and the plant has a bushy appearance. The leaves are opposite, oblong, 4-6 in long, and wooly-white when young, becoming sparsely white-hairy as they age. Flowers are globular in shape, but actually consist of numerous individual flowers. The most common color is magenta, but there are also white and pale mauve varieties. Gomphrena tolerates poor soils, heat and drought. In many parks around south India this can be seen. As a child, i had magenta variety of this plant. White and other shades were a bit of surprise to me. These photograph was taken on 3rd October, 2011 during the Dussehra flower show at Mysore.
