Top 7 Fast Growing Trees and Shrubs

Spring planting has already started in some places and it’s the perfect time to plant. If you’re looking for a fast growing plant for your Bios Urn®, then you can consider these fast growing trees and shrubs.

Here are some of the most popular fast growing trees. If you have any to add to the list, be sure to let us know in the Comments section below! We´d love to hear from you and we are sure that many other readers would like to too!

And if you are looking for the perfect tree for your Bios Urn®, you may also be interested in reading How To Plant the Bios Urn® with the Tree of your Choice.

Some of the Top 7 Fast Growing Trees & Shrubs

1. Tuliptree

(also known as Liriodendron tulipifera)

If you’re looking for a stunning tree that grows quickly and doesn’t suffer from many pest problems, your search is over.

The tulip-tree is one of the largest native trees in North America. It is a member of the magnolia family and has distinct tulip-shaped characteristic in its leaves, flowers, and fruit. The showy, goblet-shaped, orange-yellow-green flowers appear in late spring after the leaves; the cone-like seed clusters sit upright on the branches making it a stunningly unique tree.  The tuliptree is beloved for its beauty, serving as the state tree of Kentucky, Indiana and Tennessee. It is the tallest of the eastern hardwoods—and a rapid grower when conditions are right.

2. Green Giant Arborvitae 

(also known as Thuja standishii x plicata and ‘Green Giant’)

Tall and narrow, the green giant arborvitae is a majestic, evergreen tree of conical to pyramidal habit with sprays of rich glossy green foliage year-round. Fast-growing, up to 5 feet per year (150 cm), it is regarded as a disease-free substitute for Leland cypress. It is a very majestic tree

3. Hybrid Poplar 

(also known as Populus deltoides x Populus nigra)

Whether you are planting hybrid poplar trees or one of the popular varieties, you’ll find that poplar tree care is easy in the proper location. Poplars need fertile soil, acidic or neutral, as well as direct sun and sufficient water to keep their roots moist. One of the most important poplar tree facts is the sheer size of the tree. It rises to between 50 and 165 feet high with a trunk diameter of up to 8 feet. You must be sure that your tree will have sufficient room to grow to its full size. So make sure you don´t plant near any houses. Their claim to fame is speed, with vertical growth of 5–8′ per year not being uncommon.

Poplars are wonderful backyard trees, good for specimen planting as well as wind-rows.

4. Blue Hydrangea

(also known as Hydrangea macrophylla ‘Nikko’)

With immense flower heads, hydrangeas flaunt a timeless charm that is hard to resist. Unrivaled in the shrub world for beautiful flowers, the elegant ladies are easy to cultivate, tolerate almost any soil, and produce abundant blooms. Colors beguile with clear blue, vibrant pink, frosty white, lavender, and rose blossoms—sometimes all blooming on the same plant!

The blue hydrangea is the image most of us conjure up in our heads when we think of hydrangeas in general. Giant, long-lasting, mophead blooms appear in the summer.

5. Weeping Willow 

(also known as Salix babylonica)

Since ancient times, Weeping Willows have been revered. Their flowing forms and fluttering, silver-backed leaves have inspired poetry, music, and art. Many of us today have fond childhood memories of a certain neighborhood Weeping Willow—scaling its branches that were made for climbing and holding secret meetings in the space inside its big, protective domed canopy.

The tree is easy to grow and quick to take root, reaching heights between 30′ and 40′ and nearly the same in width. It lends itself well to planting singly or in small groves near the edge of ponds, lakes and rivers. Make sure not to plant it near a house though, these aren’t trees for small pieces of land.

6. Leyland Cypress

(also known as x Cupressocyparis leylandii)

Noted for its rapid growth and slender shape, the Leyland cypress grows well in a wide variety of soil and climate conditions and makes an excellent wind break as it provides a dense barrier with good color all 12 months of the year. It is a very majestic tree.

7. Red Delicious Apple

(also known as Malus domestica or‘Red Delicious’)

The flavour of home-grown apples, Malus domestica, beats that of shop-bought varieties any day. Apple trees are easy to grow and are available grafted on to a range of rootstocks, making them perfect for growing in any size of garden – some can even be grown in containers.

Malus domestica benefits from growing in a sheltered, sunny spot, where the blossom will attract the greatest variety of pollinators and where the sun will ripen the fruit.

Do you have any other fast growing trees to add to the list? If so let us know in the Comments section below! We´d love to hear from you.

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You may also be interested in reading Why Soil Matters to Tree Health. Or How I can Make Sure my Bios Urn Tree Grows.