13 of the Fastest Growing Shrubs

Whether you want to improve your garden’s privacy or fill space in flowerbeds quickly while waiting for slow-growing plants to establish themselves, we think you’ll find my list of fast-growing shrubs insightful.

Update 2023: I’ve expanded this topic further by revealing the very best plants for garden privacy, this updated list includes shrubs and hedges that grow tall and dense, not just quickly.

Pro Tip: Use RootGrow

Once you’ve chosen a plant from our list of fast-growing shrubs, be sure to dip the root ball in mycorrhizal fungi such as RootGrow.

If you’ve never used a root development product like this before, check out the reviews on Amazon.

This stuff works incredibly well, we use it on all of our new plants and it’s endorsed by the Royal Horticultural Society. You can expect the shrub to grow faster, look healthier and have better resistance to diseases.

2) Cherry Laural

Cherry Laural is a fast-growing evergreen shrub that gardeners often plant as a privacy hedge and screen.

You’ve probably seen this popular shrub on many occasions, and you can prune it into many different shapes with varying thicknesses.

Expect up to 25 inches (60cm) of growth per year, not only is this shrub a fast grower but with regular yearly pruning, you can expect the Cherry Laural to form a thick, dense bush.

This shrub is perfect for those of you that would like some privacy in your garden.

If left unpruned, expect this shrub to grow up to 8 metres tall with a spread of up to 9 metres. 

While the Cherry Laural may lack the colourful blossoms of Hydrangeas, it does have thick woody branches and broad, shiny green leaves all year round. Small flowers and non-edible fruits complement the leaves in the spring and summer.

This shrub will perform well in all growing conditions, such as full sun, partial shade and also full shade. Expect Cherry Laural to thrive in almost all soil types.

Beyond yearly or twice-yearly pruning, this shrub will require very little maintenance, and you won’t need to spend anything on fertilisers or feeds, which are rarely needed. 

Be warned though; with such a high growth rate and enormous height/width potential, this shrub can become a nuisance if left unpruned. 

My experience: Daniel, my colleague here at DIY Gardening, has specified this bush dozens of times in his previous role as a landscape gardener. He stated that it’s a go-to bush for filling space quickly and is popular as it’s cheap and requires little attention beyond pruning.

3) Fast Growing Bamboo

While not technically a shrub, bamboo, which is a grass, shares many characteristics with its woody companions. Bamboo has thick wood-like stems, grows tall and fast and produces plenty of green leaves.

You can split bamboo into two varieties; clumping and running.

Running bamboo can be a nuisance as the roots, known as rhizomes, can grow laterally for many metres and colonise surrounding areas. Expect running bamboo to grow vertically by up to 1.5 metres each year.

Clumping bamboo is quite different; the rhizomes grow in a “u” shape, so the next stem grows vertically and not horizontally. Clumping bamboo has a lateral spread of around 10cm per year but grows vertically by up to half a metre per year.

Both types of bamboo are popular with gardeners looking for a fast-growing plant that functions as a screen or wall. I have bamboo in the corner of our garden, and it screens our space from the neighbour’s window.

I’ve also grown bamboo in containers as a feature in my garden.

I’ve never felt the need to use fertiliser or water the bamboo and it’s always done its job of filling space fast.

5) Rambling Rector

As the name suggests, the Rambling Rector is a fast-growing shrub that can reach its full potential of 7 metres high and 6 metres horizontally within six years if the conditions are optimal.

Expect yearly growth of up to a metre per year or if the conditions are less than perfect, a still impressive 0.5 metres.

While this rambling rose may lack the density required by homeowners for year-round privacy, it produces dense bunches of flowers once per year and also emits a strong, pleasant musk fragrance.

Grow into trees, along walls and fences, or over garden arches, this rambler is easy to train; leaves and flowers will also cover the twiggy frame during the warmer seasons.

The Rambling Rector is tolerant of most soil types, performs well in full and partial sunlight and can survive in the shade too.

This fast-growing shrub requires only essential maintenance such as yearly pruning, winter mulching and training along wires if needed by the gardener.

My experience: I’ve had to cut back and control this shrub on a few occasions and have seen it damage flimsy fences, so be careful and only plant it if you’re prepared to control it.

Image by Kurt Stuber. Image licence.

Image by Kenpei. Image licence.

7) Irish Ivy

Hedera Hibernica is a fast-growing climbing shrub that you’ll find in many cottage gardens, forecourts, and along walls, fences and other vertical structures.

This shrub is easy to train along any surface and produces dense, large glossy green leaves up to 12cm in width. During the winter you’ll be rewarded with plenty of non-edible dark fruits that’ll add colour to your garden when it needs it the most.

If you’re looking for a fast-growing plant that produces a thick, dense cover of leaves all-year-round, then consider Irish Ivy.

Not only is this a fast-grower, but it also made it onto my list of the best plants for privacy. Irish Ivy clings to frames and surfaces, making it perfect for hedging/screening.

This climbing shrub is incredibly easy to maintain, gardeners can prune it at any time of the year, and the plant performs well in all soils and growing conditions, including shade and part-shade.

Expect Irish Ivy to grow up to 12 metres tall and a possible spread of 8 metres. Full growth takes the plant around ten years, so you can assume a yearly growth rate of up to around a metre, if conditions are favourable.

My experience: I’ve previously grown this ivy around an outbuilding to hide it, and while it did the job, it quickly grew out of control. Consider ivy, but only if you have the time to keep it check with pruning and training, as it can also choke out other plants.

9) Russian Vine (Fallopia-baldschuanica)

Fallopia-baldschuanica is a fast-growing plant of the Knotweed family.

Hardy and very easy to grow, this plant will perform well in any soil condition, in the shade, full or partial sunlight. Plant in sheltered or windswept locations, Fallopia-baldschuanica will grow almost anywhere.

Expect rampant growth, thousands of beautiful, tiny white flowers and plenty of foliage.

You can train Fallopia-baldschuanica to proliferate over almost any surface; fences, walls, outbuildings, sheds, drainpipes and even roofs.

This climbing vine does come with a warning though; it grows at such an incredible rate (several metres per year in all directions) that it will smoother and choke any other plants in its way.

Fallopia-baldschuanica, which is also known as “Mile a Minute” is often used to hide unsightly walls or structures quickly and is best planted well away from the home and other plants.

You can prune this climber in spring but don’t assume this will be an easy task, it grows into cracks and crevices where it can be destructive, a nuisance and very difficult to remove.

Complete removal of the plant by organic methods alone is nearly impossible, and you’ll probably need to use a broad-spectrum herbicide such as Glyphosate.

Are you looking for a plant that grows at an incredibly fast rate? This climber is for you. Just do your research first; otherwise, you could find yourself taking on far more than you can handle. 

My experience: I once had to remove this climber from a property (took ages) as it was a nuisance, so I only recommend it if you have the time to maintain it.

Image from Forestry Images under licence.

10) Common Elder (Sambucus nigra)

Common Eder, also known as Sambucus nigra, or Elderberry, produces fragrant summer flowers, plenty of foliage during the warmer seasons and lots of small black elderberries which are rich in vitamin C.

Common Elder is another fast-growing plant, which, if left unpruned, can reach a height of 4-8 metres and a lateral spread of up to 3.5 metres within 12-18 years.

Common Elder grows at a rate of between 0.4 and 0.6 metres a year and is often pruned into a medium-sized bush at around 1.5metres or grown in batches to form a hedge.

Deciduous, Common Elder has green leaves in the summer which turn yellow in the autumn. New leaves start to form in early spring, and by summer, plenty of red berries will be visible amongst the fragrant cream-coloured flowers.

Grow in the sun or part-shade in well-drained soil; this fast-growing shrub copes well in both sheltered and exposed locations and most soil types.

12) Fast Growing Chinese Wisteria

Although known as a vine rather than a shrub, you can train this climber and prune it to grow in many different ways; along sturdy fences, walls, up and along pergolas, tree trunks or even as a freestanding bush, called a Standard Wisteria.

Expect fast growth of up to a couple of metres per year and a final reach of up to an incredible 20 metres.

While this impressive fast-growing climbing vine lacks year-round density, you can expect beautiful deep-coloured flowers during spring. Unfortunately, Chinese Wisteria won’t flower until the 3rd or 4th season after planting.

Plant in full sun for the best results, you should regularly train the stems towards your preferred direction, then prune twice a year once it’s grown as far you want, this will encourage flowering.

My experience: This is another plant I’ve had to remove from a property as it kept climbing up the drainpipes and into the guttering. While it grows quickly, it can be a real pest. Grow in a spot where you can contain it.

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