The Impatient Gardener’s Guide: Get Lush Results, Fast!

I’ve had my hands in the dirt for more than two decades, first as a landscape designer and now running a small farm that supplies local chefs. And in all that time, the number one thing people ask for is speed. They want to fill a bare patch of dirt, create a privacy screen before the neighbors start their summer barbecues, or, most importantly, taste a vegetable they grew themselves. Like, tomorrow.

While gardening is often about the slow and steady, let’s be real—sometimes you just want to see something happen! And there’s a real, practical need for plants that work on a shorter timeline. They’re not just for the impatient; they’re a strategic tool.

Think of them as the opening act. They can fill in the gaps while your slower, more permanent plants are still getting their act together. They can give you a quick harvest in the spring before your main crops even think about going in. But honestly, the best part? They can give a new gardener a massive boost of confidence. Seeing a radish pop up in just a few days can be the hook that gets someone hooked on gardening for life.

But a quick heads-up: “fast-growing” is a promise a plant can only keep if you do your part. Amazing soil, the right amount of sun, and consistent water are the rocket fuel. Without them, even a champion sprinter will stumble. So, this guide is about picking the right plants and giving them exactly what they need to go full throttle.

The Secret Fuel for Speedy Growth

So, why do some plants grow like they’re on a mission while others take their sweet time? It all boils down to energy and survival strategy. Plants are little sugar factories, using sunlight, water, and air to make fuel. The fast ones are just incredibly efficient at it.

An annual plant, for example, has one season—one shot—to sprout, grow, flower, and make seeds for the next generation. Its whole life is a sprint. That’s why things like radishes and lettuces are bred to get big enough to eat before the weather turns too hot or cold.

The foundation for all this speed is the soil. It’s the pantry your plants raid for nutrients. To get things growing quickly, that pantry needs to be fully stocked with things like nitrogen for leafy greens, phosphorus for strong roots and flowers, and potassium for all-around plant health. Fast growers are hungry growers, so you have to start with rich soil.

Quick tip: Before I plant anything, I always improve my garden beds. It’s not as complicated as it sounds. Just grab a bag of good-quality organic compost, which usually costs around $8 at a garden center. Spread about 2-3 inches of it over your planting area. Then, use a garden fork or a small tiller to mix it into the top 6-8 inches of your soil. That’s it! You’ve just served your plants a slow-release feast.

Fast Food: Getting Edibles on Your Plate, ASAP

For a lot of us, the ultimate reward is a quick harvest. There’s just something deeply satisfying about eating food you grew yourself within a month or two of planting a tiny seed.

Radishes: The 30-Day Wonder

Radishes are the classic fast vegetable for a reason. Some of the common round, red varieties can go from a seed to your salad in as little as 25 days. A packet of seeds will only set you back about $3-$4 and can give you dozens of radishes.

The secret to a perfect radish is uninterrupted growth. Any stress, and they can turn woody or unpleasantly spicy. The soil needs to be loose, so they have room to form a nice round root. I sow seeds about a half-inch deep and an inch apart. Once they sprout, I thin them to two inches apart. This part is CRUCIAL. If they’re too crowded, you’ll get a lovely patch of green leaves with nothing happening underground.

I once had a new helper who was so frustrated that all his radishes were just leaves. Turns out, he had used a fertilizer that was super high in nitrogen, which basically tells the plant, “Grow leaves! Forget the root!” We switched him to a bed with more balanced compost, and his next crop was perfect. It’s a classic rookie mistake!

Leafy Greens: The Gift That Keeps on Giving

Things like loose-leaf lettuce, arugula, and spinach are fantastic because you can get harvests for weeks from one planting. They’re perfect for garden beds and containers alike.

We rely heavily on what’s called the “cut-and-come-again” method. It’s so simple. Instead of pulling up the whole plant, just use a clean pair of scissors to snip off the outer leaves. Take about a third of the plant at a time, but make sure you leave the central growing point untouched. The plant will keep pushing out new leaves from the center, giving you a steady supply of fresh greens.

Good to know: These are generally cool-weather crops. In hotter climates, they’re often grown through the winter. Once temperatures get much above 80°F, they tend to “bolt”—meaning they send up a flower stalk and the leaves turn bitter. If you live somewhere with hot summers, look for varieties specifically labeled as “heat-tolerant” or “slow-bolt.”

Bush Beans: Quick, Productive, and Easy

Bush beans are way faster than their climbing pole-bean cousins. You can go from seed to your first big handful of beans in about 50 to 60 days. They tend to produce a large crop all at once, which is great if you plan on freezing or canning some for later. A 10-foot row can easily yield enough for several family dinners plus a few bags for the freezer.

Here’s a lesser-known trick: Beans can make their own nitrogen, but they need help from special bacteria in the soil. To give them a huge head start, I always treat my bean seeds with a powdered inoculant before planting. It’s a fine black powder that you can find at most garden centers for about $5 a bag—and one bag will last you ages. Just get the seeds a little damp, toss them in a bag with a pinch of the powder, and shake until they’re coated. This one tiny step makes a huge difference in plant health and how many beans you’ll get.

Fast Flowers for a Pop of Instant Color

Annual flowers are designed by nature to put on a big, fast show to attract pollinators. They are absolutely perfect for filling in new beds or making your patio containers look amazing in just a few weeks.

Marigolds: The Garden’s Workhorse

Marigolds are incredibly easy to grow from seed and will start blooming in about eight weeks. The smaller, French-type marigolds are great for edging a garden bed. I love tucking them in with my tomatoes; many old-school gardeners swear their strong scent helps keep certain pests away. They also release a substance into the soil that can fight off tiny root-damaging pests, which is a neat little bonus.

To keep them blooming all summer long, you have to “deadhead” them. It just means pinching or cutting off the spent, faded flowers. This tricks the plant into producing more flowers instead of putting its energy into making seeds.

Zinnias: A Party for Pollinators

Oh yeah, if you want to bring all the bees and butterflies to your yard, plant zinnias. They grow super fast in full sun and hot weather, and they are one of the most rewarding flowers you can grow. My farm is always buzzing thanks to our zinnia patch.

To get a sturdy, bushy plant loaded with flowers, you have to be brave and pinch it back when it’s young. When the plant is about 8-12 inches tall, just snip off the top 3-4 inches of the main stem. I know, it feels wrong! But this forces the plant to send out multiple side shoots from the base, and each of those new shoots will produce a flower. You’ll get a full, gorgeous plant instead of one tall, gangly one.

Sunflowers: The Classic Summer Flower

Nothing says summer like a sunflower. They can go from a tiny seed to a towering, stunning flower in 70 to 100 days. If you’re growing the really tall varieties, you’ll definitely need to give them some support. Just drive a sturdy stake into the ground a few inches from the stalk when you plant the seed, and loosely tie the stalk to the stake as it grows.

Quick Coverage for Bare Spots and Ugly Fences

Sometimes the mission is simple: cover something up, fast. Whether it’s a patch of bare ground or a less-than-lovely fence, some plants are experts at spreading out.

Vines: Choose Wisely!

This is where a little knowledge goes a long way. Some vines take years to get going, but others are incredibly vigorous. For example, there’s a type of fragrant, white-flowering clematis that can grow 20 feet in a single season. But be careful—that same vigor means it can be invasive in some areas, seeding itself everywhere. It’s always a good idea to check with your local agricultural extension office before planting anything known for aggressive growth. A better choice might be a fast-growing but less-invasive spring-blooming variety.

By the way, there’s a famous saying for clematis: “feet in the shade, head in the sun.” It just means the roots need to stay cool and moist, so planting them with a thick layer of mulch or a shallow-rooted groundcover at the base is key. The top of the plant, however, needs at least six hours of sun to produce all those beautiful flowers.

Spreading Petunias: A Waterfall of Color

There are types of petunias that have been specially bred to spread out rather than grow upright. A single plant can cover several square feet of ground or spill dramatically out of a hanging basket. They grow incredibly fast once the weather warms up.

But these guys are hungry. To get that lush, full look, you have to feed them regularly. I use a balanced, water-soluble fertilizer every 10 to 14 days. Without it, they’ll look sparse and sad.

From my experience, even the best-cared-for petunias can start to look a bit long and scraggly by mid-summer. Don’t be afraid to give them a haircut! I had a client who nearly had a heart attack when I took my shears and cut their entire hanging basket back by half. They thought I’d killed it. But two weeks later, they called me, absolutely amazed that it was fuller and more beautiful than it had been in June. A little tough love works wonders.

Putting It All Together: Pro-Level Strategies

Once you get the hang of it, you can use these speedy plants in some really clever ways to get the most out of your garden.

• Succession Planting: This just means following one crop with another in the same spot. A bed might start with radishes in April. After you harvest them, you immediately plant bush beans. After the beans are done, you can pop in some fall greens. The ground is always working for you.
• Intercropping: This is planting a fast crop in between a slow one. Picture this: you’ve planted a row of big, slow-growing Brussels sprout plants. In all that empty space between them, pop in a quick-growing lettuce plant. You’ll be eating salads long before the sprouts ever need that extra room. It’s a brilliant way to use every square inch of space.

Your First Fast-Growth Project: The $30 Patio Salad Bowl

Feeling inspired? You can get started this weekend for less than the price of a few fancy salads. This is all you need to grow your own.

• A good-sized container or pot: Something at least 12 inches across. (~$15)
• One bag of quality potting soil: Don’t just use dirt from your yard! (~$8)
• One packet of loose-leaf lettuce seeds: Look for a “cut-and-come-again” mix. (~$3)

Fill the pot with soil, sprinkle the seeds on top, cover them lightly, and keep the soil moist. In just a few weeks, you’ll be snipping off your very own greens. It’s that easy.

A Final, Friendly Warning…

I have to say this one more time: “fast-growing” can sometimes be code for “invasive.” Plants like mint or running bamboo are champion growers that can quickly take over your garden and escape into the wild, which is a big problem. Always do a quick search on a plant before you buy it, or stick to growing aggressive plants in containers to keep them contained. When in doubt, ask someone at a local nursery—they’ll know what’s a problem in your specific area.

Fast-growing plants are an amazing tool. They offer quick rewards, solve common garden problems, and frankly, they’re just a lot of fun. Give one a try—you might be surprised how much you can grow in just one short season.

Inspirational Gallery with Photos

For a fast vertical screen: The classic Morning Glory (‘Heavenly Blue’) is an annual that will climb 10-15 feet in a single season, offering lush foliage and vibrant blooms.

For returning speed: The perennial Clematis ‘Jackmanii’ also grows rapidly each spring, covering a trellis with its famous deep purple flowers after its first year of establishment.

The choice depends on whether you want a single-season burst or a reliable annual return.

A radish seed can germinate in as little as 3-4 days under ideal conditions, making it one of the most satisfyingly fast plants for a first-time gardener.

For a harvest that keeps on giving, opt for

The most counterintuitive tip for speed: Give your plants space! It’s tempting to sow seeds thickly, but overcrowded seedlings compete for light, water, and nutrients, which dramatically slows their growth. Thinning them out according to the seed packet directions is the single best thing you can do to ensure a fast, healthy crop.

Plants can require up to 10 times more nitrogen for vigorous leafy growth than any other nutrient.

This is why high-nitrogen amendments are the secret weapon for fast-growing greens. A weekly feeding with a liquid fertilizer like Neptune’s Harvest Fish Emulsion (2-4-1) during the peak growing phase will provide that readily available nitrogen, translating directly into bigger, lusher leaves, faster.

Don’t forget the flowers! Fast-blooming annuals can fill your garden with color in just 8-10 weeks from seed, attracting pollinators that will benefit your vegetables too.

• Cosmos ‘Sensation Mix’: Airy, daisy-like flowers on tall, feathery stems.
• Zinnia ‘California Giant’: Big, bold, dahlia-like blooms in a rainbow of hot colors.
• Sunflower ‘Mammoth Russian’: The classic giant that can grow over 10 feet tall in a summer.

Need to hide an unsightly shed… yesterday?

Vines are your answer. For a purely decorative and incredibly fast screen, try Thunbergia alata, the Black-Eyed Susan Vine, which will happily scramble up a trellis in weeks. For a dual-purpose screen that also yields a delicious crop, plant ‘Scarlet Runner’ beans. Their lush heart-shaped leaves and brilliant red flowers are beautiful, and they produce prolific, tasty beans.

Think of fast-growing annuals as the garden’s ‘stunt doubles.’ Use bold drifts of zinnias or a quick-spreading groundcover like sweet alyssum to fill the bare earth between your newly planted, slow-growing hydrangeas or boxwoods. The annuals provide instant visual impact and suppress weeds, then gracefully bow out as the permanent ‘stars’ of the show grow into their roles.

• Fills bare spots in weeks, not months.
• Creates a living mulch that suppresses weeds.
• Attracts beneficial hoverflies and bees.
• Fills the air with a sweet, honey-like fragrance.

The secret? A simple packet of Sweet Alyssum ‘Carpet of Snow’ seeds. Broadcast them directly onto the soil in sunny spots for a low-growing, flowering carpet in record time.

For the ultimate speed-gardening thrill, try microgreens. You don’t even need a garden—a sunny windowsill will do. Scatter seeds like ‘Spicy Radish Mix’ or ‘Basic Broccoli’ from a supplier like True Leaf Market on a shallow tray of soil. Keep them moist, and you can be snipping nutrient-packed, flavor-intense greens for your salads and sandwiches in just 7 to 14 days.