Fast-Growing Plants

For gardeners in a hurry. Fast-growing plants close the gap between a bare new garden and a full one, putting on real size in a season or two to give shade, screening, and structure while the slower, longer-lived plantings catch up.

222 plants in this collection

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№ 221
Zelkova serrata, Japanese zelkova, vase-shaped deciduous shade tree
Japanese Zelkova
Zelkova serrataJapanese Zelkova

One of the finest shade trees for a hard place. Zelkova serrata, the Japanese zelkova, is a deciduous tree of the elm family, native to Japan, Korea, and eastern China, long valued as the sacred keyaki of Japanese temples and a prized timber and bonsai subject. In the West the tree has become a leading street and lawn tree, in no small part as a graceful, disease-resistant stand-in for the American elms lost to Dutch elm disease.

Hardiness
Zones 5–8
Light
Full Sun
Height
40–70 ft.
Spread
40–60 ft.
Bloom
Green
Plant type
Tree
$23.00Currently unavailable
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№ 222
Zephyranthes atamasco, atamasco lily, white pink-flushed rain-lily flowers over grassy foliage
Atamasco Lily
Zephyranthes atamascoAtamasco Lily

A native lily that answers the rain. Zephyranthes atamasco, the atamasco lily or rain lily, is a bulbous perennial of the amaryllis family, native to moist woods and meadows of the Southeastern United States. The name atamasco comes from the Powhatan people of the Virginia tidewater, an old word carried into botany, and the plant has also long been called Easter lily for the season of bloom.

Hardiness
Zones 6–9
Light
Full Sun / Part Shade
Height
6–12 in.
Spread
6–12 in.
Bloom
White
Plant type
Perennial
$16.00Currently unavailable
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