Have you ever considered these easy-to-care-for and fast-growing shrubs for your garden?
Why choose fast-growing shrubs? The garden seems to be the hardest place to design cohesively and in a way that can be both aesthetic and give you natural privacy.
This is why these plants are the best choice when it comes to this since they can both fill in the negative space between other plants or trees while also adding dimension, color, and vibrancy to your yard!
They should be amazing, right? After all, they are relatively easy to care for, and it is a great way to get all that you desire from your yard.
The downside of them is that it can take a while for shrubs to reach maturity, and this can mean that that perfect landscape you have in mind is going to have to wait longer to be fully completed.
Luckily for you, we have done the research and found some of the best fast-growing shrubs out there that are going to spread and fill your yard quickly, without you having to wait for decades for them to reach their full potential.
From small to larger plants, we have brought you a wide variety that is going to reach maturity in only a couple of years, so your dream garden is just around the corner.
Get ready to discover these green beauties!
Were you thinking of shrubs for your garden? Which varieties are your favorites? What other related articles would you be interested in reading? Share your thoughts in the comments!
Barberry
- Growth size: 4 feet tall by 1.5 feet wide
- Growing requirements: well-drained, loamy soil; full sun to partial shade positioning
If you are looking to add some color to your yard, then look no further than the barberry. In particular, you should be on the hunt for the orange rocket barberry, which is going to be the most vibrant variety.
This plant ends up having slender, upright branches that are going to grow in an organized column shape, thus adding texture and height to your landscape.
Not to mention, the foliage on this fast-growing shrub is going to be spectacular, and in most cases, it’s going to be complementary to the other plants in your landscape.
The leaves are going to be growing in a coral color, only to deepen in color as they grow, reaching their signature red-purple hue.
With the inside of the plant being lime green, the color combination is bound to bring vibrancy and good vibes to your yard.
Panicled Hydrangea
- Growth size: between 8 and 20 feet tall by 6 to 8 feet wide
- Growing requirements: moist, rich soil; full sun to partial shade positioning
Probably considered to be one of the most beautiful shrubs out there, hydrangeas are also one of those that are going to be growing fast, so you can enjoy their pretty, showy bloom in a matter of months.
Hydrangeas are some of the plants that grow fast, and the best variety if you do not want them to take a long time is to go for the Panicled Hydrangea (Hydrangea paniculata).
The shrub that will grow is going to be anywhere from medium to large in size, depending on how much you allow it to grow, and its shape will be oval to elliptical, so you need to make sure you have enough space for it.
The leaves are going to run bright green in mid-spring, and soon after, you are going to see panicles of flowers make their appearance. They will first appear in cone-shaped inflorescence, and you will be able to enjoy them all through the summer and fall.
In the fall, these flowers are going to turn a cinnamon-red color.
This shrub is perfect if you are looking for a fast-growing one, as it reaches its full maturity in three years, and it can grow even more than 12 inches a year if you can meet its growing conditions so keep them for a fast and spectacular growth.
Izu Tree
- Growth size: between 3 and 10 feet tall by 4 to 8 feet wide
- Growing requirements: easily tolerates different types of soils and conditions; needs full sun to partial shade.
Also known by its Latin name, Distylium, this fast-growing shrub can sometimes be mistaken for a tree, and it has become more and more popular in the last decades.
What attracts people to the izu tree is the fact that it is highly adaptable and easy to care for. These shrubs can easily handle both wet and dry soils (make sure the soil is never flooded), and they do not require only full sun or shade.
This can mean that you can place it almost anywhere in your house as long as it is going to receive at least partial sunlight, and you will not have to worry about it dying due to light conditions.
What’s more, the leaves are always a pleasure to see since they can range in color from a lustrous dark green to a gorgeous blue-green shade, with the leaves being a bit narrower than what we are used to.
Weigela (Weigela Florida)
- Growth size: between 2 and 6 feet tall by 2 to 6 feet wide (all dependent on variety)
- Growing requirements: well-drained, rich soil; requires full sun
This fast-growing shrub is going to be able to satisfy those of us who want maybe more than one color of the same type of shrub. The Weigela grows in a wide range of colors, and it has a variety of blooms as well.
The bare stems end up growing their leaves in spring (which are around 3 inches long by 1 inch wide), and then they are soon followed by the flowers, which are a color burst sent from heaven.
They are tubular-shaped, and they are born for every leaf on the stem, so you can imagine just how much burst of color you’re going to get from one shrub.
The original colors of the Weigela are white and pink, but the new varieties also come in magenta and red, along with a color-changing variety that goes from white to pink.
Like the hydrangeas, this fast-growing shrub is going to reach full maturity in about three tears, so you can expect to see it grow up to 12 inches every month, or about one inch a month in height.
Viburnum
- Growth size: 6 feet tall by 4 to 6 feet wide
- Growing requirements: well-drained, yet moist soil; requires full sun
If you are looking for an evergreen shrub that is going to keep your garden green for a long, then you definitely need to consider getting a viburnum.
The variety we recommend is the coppertop Sweet Viburnum (Viburnum odoratissimum ‘BRANT01’), since this is the one that is going to be the fastest growing and has been used as a privacy hedge for decades.
When growing, they generally start out with a beautiful copper color for all new growth that then matures over time in a vibrant, dark green.
This fast-growing shrub is going to grow gorgeous white flowers from spring to fall, and you will be able to enjoy its sweet, fragrant scent for most of the summer.
While a lot of people have been using it as a screening plant, you can also use it as an accent shrub in some spots of your garden.
They do grow very fast, as some gardeners report having them grow up to three times in size in one year, so you need to be prepared for that.
Generally, they do not need to be fed, but if you desire your viburnum shrub to be strong and encourage new growth, you should consider using Growmore once a year, in early spring.
Easy-to-grow plants are the easiest way to get into gardening. But sometimes even the easiest-to-care-for plants end up being challenging. Most first-time gardeners are challenged by the fact that they cannot get their flowers to bloom. If this seems to be an issue to you too, check out our article about the most common reasons why this happens here.
