56 Fast-growing houseplants and climbers ⚡
Want results you can actually see? These houseplants are the quick movers - vigorous vines, trailers and climbers whose notes point to fast growth or a spreading habit. Give them decent light and steady water and they will fill a shelf, trail down a bookcase or climb a moss pole in a single season.
Fast growth means more feeding and more frequent trimming or repotting. These reward you quickly, but they also ask for a little more upkeep than a slow grower.
Alocasia Macrorrhiza
Alocasia Macrorrhiza, often called Giant Taro or Upright Elephant Ear, is a dramatic tropical…
Anthurium Vittarifolium
Anthurium Vittarifolium is a pendant, strap-leaf aroid prized for its dramatically long…
Arrowhead Plant (Syngonium podophyllum)
The Arrowhead Plant - also sold as the "Goosefoot Plant" or simply Syngonium - is one of the…
Asparagus Fern
The asparagus fern looks feathery and fern-like but is actually a member of the asparagus…
Baby Tears (Soleirolia soleirolii - Angel's Tears)
Baby Tears - also called Angel's Tears, Mind-Your-Own-Business, or by its botanical name…
Beetle Peperomia
Beetle Peperomia is a compact, trailing epiphyte prized for its small, glossy leaves marked…
Begonia Luxurians
Begonia luxurians is a striking cane-type begonia grown almost entirely for its foliage, which…
Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia)
The Bird of Paradise is the houseplant that turns a room into a jungle.
Boston Fern (Nephrolepis exaltata)
The Boston Fern is the lush, cascading classic of the fern world - a soft fountain of arching…
Brassia (Spider Orchid)
Brassia is the spider orchid - sprays of extraordinary blooms with petals drawn out into 15-20…
Burro's Tail (Sedum morganianum)
The Burro's Tail - Sedum morganianum, also known as the donkey's tail - is a trailing succulent…
Christmas Cactus (Schlumbergera)
The Christmas Cactus is a beloved heirloom houseplant - the one that bursts into vivid, exotic…
Cretan Brake Fern
The Cretan brake fern is the easygoing table fern - upright, ribbon-like fronds (often with a…
Dieffenbachia (Dumb Cane)
The Dieffenbachia is a bold, fast-growing foliage plant with large, dramatic leaves splashed…
Dischidia (Button Orchid / Ant Plant)
Dischidia is a genus of small, trailing epiphytes from the same family as the Hoya - and if you…
Dragon Wing Begonia
The Dragon Wing Begonia is a vigorous, fibrous-rooted cane begonia prized for its glossy…
English Ivy (Hedera helix)
English Ivy is the classic trailing, climbing vine - elegant, lush, and full of old-world…
Ficus Audrey (Ficus benghalensis)
Ficus Audrey - Ficus benghalensis - is the houseplant quietly taking the crown from the…
Ficus Benjamina (Weeping Fig)
The Ficus Benjamina - the "Weeping Fig" - is one of the classic tree-form houseplants, a…
Ghost Plant
The ghost plant is an easy, fast-growing rosette succulent in soft, ghostly shades of pale…
Goldfish Plant (Nematanthus / Columnea)
The Goldfish Plant earns its name the moment it flowers.
Gynura (Purple Passion Plant)
The Purple Passion Plant (Gynura aurantiaca) is one of those houseplants that people fall for…
Heartleaf Philodendron (Philodendron hederaceum)
The Heartleaf Philodendron is, for many growers, the single easiest trailing houseplant in…
Hoya Linearis
Hoya linearis looks like no other hoya - a waterfall of soft, needle-thin, fuzzy strands…
Hoya Wayetii
Hoya wayetii is the pinstripe hoya - narrow keel-shaped leaves edged in dark maroon that…
Lipstick Plant (Aeschynanthus radicans)
The Lipstick Plant - Aeschynanthus radicans - is a trailing tropical epiphyte grown for two…
Monstera Adansonii (Swiss Cheese Vine)
The Monstera Adansonii - the "Swiss Cheese Vine" - is the smaller, trailing, holey cousin of…
Monstera Deliciosa (Swiss Cheese Plant)
The Monstera Deliciosa - the "Swiss Cheese Plant" - is the single most recognizable houseplant…
Monstera Siltepecana (Silver Monstera)
Monstera siltepecana - the "Silver Monstera" - is one of the most rewarding aroids for someone…
Oxalis (False Shamrock / Purple Shamrock)
Oxalis triangularis - the "False Shamrock" or "Purple Shamrock" - is one of the most charming…
Peperomia Hope
Peperomia Hope is a compact, semi-trailing houseplant loved for its plump, coin-shaped leaves…
Philodendron Brasil (Philodendron hederaceum 'Brasil')
The Philodendron Brasil is a trailing heartleaf philodendron whose glossy green leaves come…
Philodendron Mccolley Finale
Philodendron 'McColley's Finale' is a compact, self-heading hybrid grown for its dramatic…
Philodendron Micans (Philodendron hederaceum var. hederaceum)
The Philodendron Micans - Philodendron hederaceum var. hederaceum - is the velvet-leaf form of…
Philodendron Moonlight
Philodendron Moonlight is a compact, self-heading hybrid prized for its electric chartreuse new…
Philodendron Squamiferum
Philodendron Squamiferum is a striking climbing aroid prized by collectors for one unmistakable…
Polka Dot Begonia (Begonia maculata)
The Polka Dot Begonia - Begonia maculata - is a striking cane begonia grown almost entirely for…
Portulacaria Afra (Dwarf Jade / Elephant Bush)
Portulacaria afra - known as Dwarf Jade or Elephant Bush - is a fast-growing, bushy succulent…
Pothos (Epipremnum aureum / Devil's Ivy)
Pothos is the friendliest trailing vine in the houseplant world - fast, forgiving, beautiful…
Prayer Plant (Maranta leuconeura)
The Prayer Plant - Maranta leuconeura - is one of the most captivating houseplants you can own…
Prickly Pear Cactus
The prickly pear, or opuntia, is the classic flat-padded cactus, forming chains of…
Rat Tail Cactus
The rat tail cactus is a trailing desert cactus grown for its long, slender, pendant stems that…
Rhaphidophora Tetrasperma (Mini Monstera)
The Rhaphidophora Tetrasperma - almost always sold as the "Mini Monstera" - is one of the most…
Rhipsalis (Mistletoe Cactus)
Rhipsalis - the "Mistletoe Cactus" - is a cactus that breaks all the rules you think you know…
Rubber Plant (Ficus elastica)
The Rubber Plant is the easy way to have a dramatic indoor tree.
Satin Pothos (Scindapsus pictus)
The Satin Pothos - sometimes sold as "Silver Pothos" or "Silk Pothos" - is one of those plants…
Schefflera (Umbrella Plant)
The Schefflera, or Umbrella Plant, is a classic, easy indoor tree - fast-growing, glossy, and…
Spider Plant (Chlorophytum comosum)
The Spider Plant is the cheerful, generous, almost foolproof classic of the houseplant world.
Spiral Cactus
The spiral cactus is a mesmerising columnar cactus whose ribs twist gently around the stem in a…
String of Bananas (Curio radicans)
The String of Bananas - sometimes still sold under its older name Senecio radicans - is one of…
String of Dolphins (Senecio peregrinus)
String of Dolphins is one of the most charming novelty succulents you can grow.
String of Hearts (Ceropegia woodii)
The String of Hearts is one of the most delicate and romantic of all trailing houseplants…
String of Pearls (Senecio rowleyanus / Curio rowleyanus)
String of Pearls is one of the most distinctive and photogenic of all houseplants - long…
Swedish Ivy (Plectranthus verticillatus)
Swedish Ivy - Plectranthus verticillatus - is one of the easiest and fastest trailing…
Tradescantia (Inch Plant / Wandering Dude)
Tradescantia is the fast, lush, colorful trailing plant that fills a hanging pot almost before…
Tuberous Begonia
The Tuberous Begonia is a flowering tuberous perennial prized for its large, rose-like or…
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Choosing a plant for a home with pets? Our table of plants toxic to cats and dogs shows what every profile says - and the reference behind it is the ASPCA toxic and non-toxic plant list.