Are you looking to add healthy greenery to your outdoor space quickly and easily? For dwellers and gardeners seeking immediate results, fast growing trees are the ideal choice. These fast growing trees offer rapid growth and long-lasting benefits, whether the goal is shade, screening, flowers, fruit, or aesthetic value. In this informative article, we examine the top fast growing trees, their maintenance requirements, and the factors that contribute to their rapid growth and development.
Fast Growing Trees: The Top 20 Plants for Quick Beauty and Shade
Benefits of Fast Growing Trees
Fast growing trees bring us shade, flowers, fruit, beauty, and increased property value. Research shows that trees add everything we need to shift our environment and improve the quality of life. Trees help mitigate the artificial changes that affect the climate on planet Earth. Here are some benefits of growing trees.
1. Removal of Carbon
Big trees help to remove carbon from the atmosphere and provide a cooler, safer environment.
2. Addition of Property Value
A home full of shady trees can increase your 10 to 20% value of your house and sell faster.
3. Absorption of Greenhouse Gases
Carbon dioxide is one of the harmful greenhouse gases that contribute to air pollution. By planting trees in your yard, you can control the pollution around your environment. Research indicates that a single mature, shady tree can absorb carbon dioxide from the air.
4. Reduce the Energy Use Bill
Planting shady trees near your home can reduce the need for air conditioning to cool your house and lower your heating bill in winter. Fast growing trees can block winter winds that enter your home through windows and doors.
5. Effect on Mental Health
Trees surrounding us correlated to a drop in anxiety and depression. Trees in your surroundings can reduce blood pressure and muscle tension in just a few minutes.
6. Cooler and Safer Urban Areas
Fast growing trees provide shade and cool temperatures in urban areas, up to 10°F.
A study found that crime is less prevalent in neighborhoods with trees.
What drives fast growing trees?
With the proper selection, placement, and care of fast growing trees, you can enjoy their growth in a few months. Many plant species take hundreds of years to mature, but these trees have been able to grow quickly due to natural environmental conditions and genetic features.
Before planting trees, consider their mature size. Avoid planting fast growing trees near drainage systems, sidewalks, buildings, utility lines, and septic lines to minimize the damage from vigorous roots and large branch breaks during windstorms.
Top 20 Fast Growing Trees for American Landscapes
1. Bald Cypress
The bald cypress (Taxodium distichum) is a tree that can withstand water and grow quickly. It is a good choice for wet locations. It can produce 1.5 to 2 feet per year and attain a maturity size of 100 feet tall and 40 feet wide. It is native to North America and grows best with full sunshine in a hardiness zone of 5-10.
2. Chinese Tallow Trees
Chinese tallow trees (Sapium sebiferum) are highly adaptable trees that grow best in full sunshine, zones 8-10, and soils with good drainage. They grow 1.5 to 2 feet annually and can attain a height of 40 feet. These fast-growing trees are the best choice for privacy in your backyard landscape. They look very beautiful when their leaves change color in the fall.
3. Cottonwoods and Lombardy Poplars
Cottonwoods (Populus deltoides) are popular along river plantations and moist places in the eastern United States. This fast-growing tree grows 36 to 48 inches every year and attains a height of 70 feet. These trees grow well in zones 3-9 with full sunshine or partially shady places with well-drained soil.
Lombardy poplars (Populus nigra var. italica) originate from the Italian region and can grow up to 6 feet per year. These trees are used for screening up to 40 to 50 feet tall. They are both beautiful but need frequent pruning because of their massive foliage and the attack of pests and diseases.
4. Dawn redwood
Dawn redwood (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) is a fast-growing tree best for privacy in residential areas. It grows 2 feet annually and attains a size of 80 feet tall and 25 feet wide at maturity. It is a good choice in Zones 4-8 in moist soil with full sunshine.
5. European Black Alder
European black alder (Alnus glutinosa) is native to European areas. This fast growing tree is a suitable choice for low, wet, and marshy regions in the landscape where other fast growing trees may not thrive. Its vigorous root system can spread over 16 feet, so be careful while planting near sidewalks, building bases, and sewer lines. European black alder is planted for wet spots in Zones 4-8 with partial shade or full sun.
6. Gum Trees
Gum trees (Eucalyptus spp.) are excellent growing trees for shade and privacy. These strong and vigorous trees can anchor a western landscape and do not grow well in the high temperatures and humidity of the Southeast. Gum trees grow 2 to 3 feet annually, and many species are 25 to 70 feet tall. Plant a gum tree in full sun in well-drained soil.
7. Japanese Pagoda Tree
The Japanese pagoda tree (Sophora japonica or Styphnolobium japonicum) produces a wide crown of lush green foliage and fragrant summer flowers. This fast-growing tree is native to Japan and China and can grow in a limited area in the United States. It can grow in Zones 6-8 and tolerate heat, drought, and pollution. This tree grows 12 inches per year and is 70 feet tall.
8. Lemon Bottlebrush
Technically, lemon bottlebrush (Callistemon citrinus) is a shrub; it shoots and grows at a rate of 10 to 15 inches annually and reaches 25 feet tall. Brush-like scented blooms of the lemon bottlebrush tree attract bees and small birds. The bottlebrush tree can withstand drought and heat. It can survive in large containers if brought in for severe winter. It can grow in Zones 9-10 with well-drained soil and sunshine.
9. Leyland Cypress
Leyland cypress (Cupressocyparis leylandii) can be used as an individual tree or in groups, fast growing hedges for Screening and privacy. It loves full sun and well-drained soil in Zones 7-10 and grows 12 to 36 inches annually. If you do not need much height, regular pruning is required.
10. Red Maple and Silver Maple
Red maple (Acer rubrum) is native to North America and boasts an impressive array of fall leaf colors. Its height is small. It can grow 100 feet tall and 40 feet wide.
The silver maple (Acer saccharinum) is a popular tree in the United States, native to the eastern part of North America. It is known as a shady tree but has weak branches and shallow roots. Red and silver maple prefers full sun and well-drained soil in Zones 3-9.
11. Willow Hybrid Tree
Another name for the Willow hybrid tree (Salix matsudana alba) is the Austree willow hybrid. This tree tolerates extreme heat, cold, and hard conditions. It is a fast-growing privacy tree, growing up to 6 feet each year. This grows well in Zones 6-9 with full sun or shade, attaining 35-45 feet tall at maturity.
12. Junior Giant Thuja Tree
The Junior Giant Thuja tree (Thuja x Junior Giant) is best for privacy screening for small yards. It is a more attractive fence than traditional, growing up to 3-5 feet annually. An ideal in Zones 5-8 receiving 6-8 hours of sunshine daily grows a 15-20 feet fence. It needs pruning regularly to maintain shape and tolerate heat, humidity, and freezing temperatures down to minus 10 degrees.
13. Emerald Green Arborvitae
Emerald green arborvitae (Thuja occidentalis) is an ideal tree for a privacy screening hedge, growing 1-2 feet per year. Its dense foliage blocks noise and neighbors, taking up limited space. The Thuja tree grows best in full sun or partial shade in Zones 3-8 outdoors. Its mature height is 10-15 feet, ideal for tight spaces and a privacy screening hedge.
14. American Sycamore Tree
The American sycamore tree (Platanus occidentalis) is also known as the Eastern sycamore, American plane tree, Buttonball tree, and Buttonwood. This fast-growing tree grows for street lining and providing privacy. It thrives in different climates and is resistant to pests and diseases in Zones 4-9, growing up to 70 feet tall. American sycamore’s thick foliage canopy provides shade over a large area rapidly, growing up to 6 feet every year. Trees can withstand both cold and hot climates successfully.
15. Northern Red Oak Tree
Common names of northern red oak (Quercus rubra) are American red oak, Eastern red oak, and Mountain red oak. It’s excellent; red fall leaves add seasonal colors. It has a broad canopy with ample shade reaching up to 75 feet at maturity. This fast-growing tree is the state tree of New Jersey, growing in Zones 3-8 outdoors with full sun and thrives in the worst conditions. American red oak is the best choice for shade, dense forests, in open spaces along the polluted city sidewalks.
16. American Sweetgum
American sweetgum (Liquidambar styraciflua) is a medium- to fast-growing tree in nature, growing up to 60-75 feet tall, loving full sun in acidic, well-drained soil in Zones 5-9. The tree is native to North America, has crown crown-shaped canopy, shade, an excellent tree for campuses, parks, and yards in the United States.
17. Black Cherry
Black cherry (Prunus serotina) is native to the eastern United States; white flowering, fast-growing tree gain 50-80 feet high at maturity. It prefers full or partial sun with moist, well-drained soil in Zones 3-9. The black cherry is planted for beautiful spring flowers and attractive foliage through summer and fall.
18. Centennial Star Magnolia
Centennial star magnolia (Magnolia stellata ‘Centennial’) is from the UK, with white, fragrant, showy flowers and a medium to fast-growing tree that performs well throughout the United States. Star magnolia is a hardy tree in Zones 4-9 and survives best in every location in the United States. It is a good choice for gardeners and landscape professionals who are looking for a specimen or foundation plant in the backyard corner.
19. Dura Heat River Birch
Dura Heat River birch (Betula nigra) is a very hardy, medium to fast-growing tree that performs well in drought, heat, and is resistant to diseases. Dura Heat River Birch is the best choice for shade in the yard. It grows 30-40 feet tall with full or partial sun in Zones 4-9.
20. Northern Catalpa
Northern Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa) is hardy enough to withstand city areas, gives white, showy flowers in late spring, and has heart-shaped leaves ideal for the yard. It thrives in acidic, alkaline, drought, or moist soil in Zones 4-8 with full or partial sun. Northern catalpa grows up to 40 to 60 feet tall and 20-40 feet wide at maturity.
Conclusion
Placing fast growing trees is a wise and valuable decision for effectively beautifying one’s place. The trees in this article offer both quick growth and attractive aesthetic appeal, whether you are seeking shade, flowers, fruits, privacy, a screening hedge, or beauty. For the best long-lasting impacts, always match the tree species to your particular area and landscape requirements.
You can get a flourishing green foliage beauty in a few years with the right fast growing trees, a living commitment to the community, and a standard of living.
FAQs About Fast Growing Trees
What is the fastest growing tree in the U.S.?
One of the fastest-growing trees is the hybrid poplar, which can reach heights of up to 8 feet annually.
Are fast growing trees suitable for cities?
Yes, species like the red maple and eastern redbud are ideal for cities due to their shallow root system.
How may I get shade from fast growing trees?
Many trees can give significant shade in five to seven years with sufficient maintenance.
