Trees are not necessarily known for being fast-growing plants. There are, however, some trees that can grow at exceptional speeds as far as the average growth rate of trees goes. How fast can a tree really grow? What are some of the fastest-growing trees on earth?
8 of the fastest growing trees on earth include:
- The Weeping Willow
- Leyland Cypress
- Hybrid Poplar
- Quaking Aspen
- River Birch
- Dawn Redwood
- October Glory Red Maple
- Arborvitae Green Giant.
These trees can all grow very tall, very quickly in their ideal environments.
These trees are not the only fastest growing trees on earth, but rather just a few examples of some of the world’s fastest-growing trees. Let us look at some of these trees and just how fast and how tall they can really grow, as well as what environments will help them develop the best and thrive.
Weeping Willow
The weeping willow is one of the world’s fastest-growing trees; this tree can grow anywhere between 3 to 8 feet in a year.
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The length that the tree can grow up to will depend on the cultivar of the tree and if it is in the ideal environment and conditions that will help it grow to its full potential.
The weeping willow will always go after water. This is why you will usually see them growing near lakes and rivers, or in areas where there is lots of soggy ground or good, moist soil.
If a weeping willow is given lots of water, this tree will thrive and shoot up in no time.
Leyland Cypress
The Leyland cypress is one of the more popular fast-growing trees.
This tree can grow by up to 3 feet in a year very easily, and because of its shape and look, it is a very popular tree for landscaping.
It is very often used to create privacy between houses in people’s yards due to their wide shape at the bottom of the branches of the tree and their tall point at the top of the tree.
Planting a few of these trees next to each other can create a little pocket of privacy in your yard once they have reached a good enough height and size.
Leyland cypress’s ideal environment is anywhere sunny; these trees thrive in the sun and will still do okay in partly shady areas.
They really do not like the shade and dark places, though, so make sure that wherever you plant these trees, they will have lots of light.
Hybrid Poplar
The hybrid popular, also known as a cottonwood tree, is a very fast-growing tree. This tree can grow anywhere between 5 to 8 per year – that is a lot of growth in just a year.
These trees are also often used as a way to create privacy in yards and gardens, but they are mainly grown in vast sections of land as firewood.
It makes sense that these trees are grown to be cut down and used, as it will take such a short amount of time to regrow these trees and use them again. Especially when compared to how long other trees generally take to grow.
The ideal environment for a hybrid poplar tree is in a sunny or partly shady space, and they prefer to be in well-drained soil; they prefer sandy or slightly moist soil.
Quaking Aspen
The quaking aspen is apart of the same family as the hybrid poplar; no wonder this tree also grows so quickly.
The quaking aspen can grow to heights between 2 to 3 feet of height per year, and because of its beautiful colors in fall, adding these quick-growing trees to your landscape will not only help with growing your trees fast it will also be aesthetically pleasing.
The ideal environment for the quaking aspen is in slightly acidic, moist, and well-drained soil.
These trees prefer to have more shade as they do not cope well in hot conditions or in dry soil.
River Birch
If its name did not give you any hints already, the river birch tree loves to be near water. These trees thrive best when planted close to bodies of water or in areas with very moist soil.
These trees can survive in more dry soil but do not do nearly as well.
When the river birch tree is in its ideal environmental conditions, it can grow between 1.5 to 2 feet per year.
Although this may not seem so fast because of how quickly some of the other trees on this list can grow, growing at a pace of 1.5 to 2 feet a year is still really fast as far as the growth speed of trees in general goes.
Dawn Redwood
The dawn redwood tree grows at a rapid speed, averaging around 4 feet per year – that is amazingly fast growth in a tree.
This tree is a very resilient tree, being able to adapt and grow in almost all kinds of soil, including clay, sandy, moist, acidic, and more; although the ideal soil that these trees enjoy most are areas with moist soil.
The dawn redwood tree really is resilient, though, and can withstand certain levels of flooding and certain levels of drought without any problems.
October Glory Red Maple
The October glory red maple tree is one of the most beautiful fast-growing trees around.
These trees will grow well in a number of different types of soil; however they do prefer soil that is well watered – they thrive best with this kind of soil.
The October glory red maple prefers an environment with some shade but will still grow with full sun expose.
October glory red maple trees can grow between 1 to 2 feet per year, and since they grow pretty quickly and are really beautiful trees, they would make the perfect addition to any back yard or front lawn.
Arborvitae Green Giant
The arborvitae green giant tree is a popular, fast-growing tree. The arborvitae green giant tree is so fast in its growth that it can grow by 3 feet per year.
People will regularly use the arborvitae green giant tree as a screen, a hedge, or even as a windbreak; they are also used in regular landscaping and put up between neighboring houses as an additional barrier for privacy.
These trees can adapt reasonably well to many different locations and growing environments. They can grow in partial shade; however, they thrive under full sunlight and need a minimum of 4 hours of full, direct sunlight in order to succeed at their full potential.
Conclusion
These trees are not all of the fastest-growing trees in the world; in fact, this list only names a handful of the fastest-growing trees in the world.
Trees are miraculous plants, being able to grow into such big natural structures in relatively short periods of time.
When you decide that you want to plant some fast-growing trees, remember that even if 2 to 3 feet a year does not seem like much to you, it is a very substantial amount of growth for a tree or for any plant, really.
Make sure that whatever tree you have chosen to plant in your yard or front lawn will have the right environmental factors to help it grow to its full potential.
For example, if your tree is going to require full sunlight to grow, do not plant it in your backyard if your backyard does not get any sun throughout the day.
Find a fast-growing tree that will suit your needs, but also a tree that will thrive and grow well in the environment that you have to offer it.
Most of all, have patience. Even trees that grow quickly take time, so make sure that you water your trees well and give them the sunshine and time that they need to grow.
