10 Best Fast Growing Balcony Plants for Quick Greenery (Full Guide)

Lush green fast growing balcony plants filling pots on an apartment patio

If you want to transform a bare concrete patio into a lush oasis quickly, choosing the best fast growing balcony plants is the secret.

When I moved into my apartment, my balcony looked depressing. It was just grey concrete flooring, black metal railings, and blank brick walls. I didn’t want to wait three years for slow-growing shrubs or dwarf trees to fill out the space. I wanted privacy, color, and fresh green foliage right away.

Fortunately, many container friendly vines, annual flowers, leafy greens, and herbs sprout rapidly and fill out planters in just a few short weeks.

According to container gardening research from the University of Maryland Extension, fast-growing annual vines and leafy greens can establish full container root systems and dense foliage within 30 to 45 days of planting from seeds or starter plugs.

Here is your complete guide to selecting the most reliable fast growing balcony plants for instant apartment greenery.

Why Fast Growing Balcony Plants are Perfect for Apartments

Renting an apartment often means you want high-impact results without waiting years for a garden to mature.

Selecting fast growing balcony plants allows renters to create instant privacy screens along railings, harvest fresh salad greens in under a month, and enjoy vibrant floral displays all summer long.

10 Best Fast Growing Balcony Plants for Quick Results

Here are the top 10 species that deliver rapid growth and lush foliage in container settings.

1. Sweet Potato Vine (Ipomoea batatas)

Sweet potato vine is one of the fastest spreading trailing plants you can grow in containers. It produces dense cascading foliage in vibrant chartreuse green or deep dark purple.

Growth Speed: Grows 2 to 3 feet per month in warm weather.
Best For: Hanging baskets, window boxes, and cascading planter edges.

2. Radishes (Raphanus sativus)

If you want quick edible rewards, radishes are the ultimate champion of fast growing balcony plants. You can harvest crisp radish roots in as little as 21 to 25 days from sowing seeds!

Growth Speed: Ready to harvest in 3 to 4 weeks.
Best For: Shallow balcony railing planters and small seed boxes.

3. Morning Glories (Ipomoea purpurea)

Morning glory vines sprout rapidly from seed and climb metal balcony railings at astonishing speeds, producing bright trumpet-shaped flowers every morning.

Growth Speed: Climbs 5 to 10 feet in a single season.
Best For: Creating natural living privacy screens on balcony trellises.

4. Golden Pothos (Epipremnum aureum)

While often grown indoors, golden pothos thrives outdoors on shaded balconies during spring and summer. It shoots out long vines covered in heart-shaped variegated leaves.

Growth Speed: Produces 6 to 12 inches of new vine growth each month.
Best For: Shaded patios and hanging pots. Pair pothos with other 10 Best Hanging Plants for Balcony Spaces for a lush tropical feel.

5. Nasturtiums (Tropaeolum majus)

Nasturtiums are stunning annual flowers that grow quickly from large seeds. Both the round green leaves and bright red-orange edible flowers add spice to summer salads.

Growth Speed: Sprouts in 7 days and blooms within 35 days.
Best For: Trailing over pot edges or climbing small balcony stakes.

6. Baby Spinach & Leaf Lettuce

Salad greens grow with lightning speed in balcony containers. Harvesting outer leaves using the “cut-and-come-again” method keeps plants producing fresh salad bowls continuously.

Growth Speed: First baby leaf harvest in 25 to 30 days.
Best For: Shallow rectangular pots. For a full crop guide, see our list of the 10 Best Small Space Balcony Vegetables.

7. Black-Eyed Susan Vine (Thunbergia alata)

This cheerful climbing vine produces hundreds of bright yellow flowers with dark centers. It covers balcony railings quickly without becoming woody or heavy.

Growth Speed: Climbs up to 6 feet in a few summer weeks.
Best For: Railing trellises and vertical balcony displays.

8. Mint (Mentha spicata)

Mint is famous for its rapid, unstoppable growth habit. A single starter plant will fill a 12-inch container with fragrant green leaves in under three weeks.

Growth Speed: Fills pots in 20 to 30 days.
Best For: Dedicated single-herbs pots on outdoor tables.

9. Marigolds (Tagetes)

Marigolds sprout easily from seed and produce dense bushy green growth topped with brilliant orange blossoms that naturally repel garden pests.

Growth Speed: Blooms within 40 days from seed.
Best For: Companion planting in vegetable containers and sunny railing boxes.

10. Bush Beans (Phaseolus vulgaris)

Bush beans grow fast, stay compact, and produce heavy clusters of fresh green bean pods without needing high trellises.

Growth Speed: Ready for harvesting in 50 days.
Best For: 3-gallon to 5-gallon balcony pots in sunny spots.

Care Tips for Fast Growing Balcony Plants

Fast growth requires steady fuel. To keep your rapid growers healthy, follow these essential maintenance tips:

Feed Regularly: Fast growers consume soil nutrients quickly. Apply an organic liquid fertilizer every 2 weeks to support rapid stem and leaf production.
Water Consistently: Fast leaf growth increases water transpiration. Never allow container soil to dry into a hard brick.
Prune and Pinch: Pinching growing tips forces fast growing balcony plants to branch out sideways, creating bushier plants rather than thin leggy stems.

Expert guidelines from the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) emphasize that regular liquid feeding is essential when cultivating fast-growing annuals in small soil containers.

If you prefer low-effort gardening, combine your quick growers with tough varieties from our list of 10 Best Low Maintenance Balcony Plants.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do fast growing balcony plants require larger pots?

Yes. Because their root systems expand rapidly, fast growers can quickly become root-bound in tiny pots. Choose containers at least 8 to 12 inches deep with good drainage holes.

Can I grow fast growing balcony plants from seeds?

Absolutely! Seeds of radishes, nasturtiums, morning glories, and spinach sprout within 5 to 10 days and are much cheaper than buying mature nursery plants.

Final Thoughts

You do not need to wait years to enjoy a lush, green apartment patio. By planting sweet potato vine, morning glories, radishes, and mint, you can enjoy vibrant fast growing balcony plants in just a few short weeks.

Which fast-growing plant are you adding to your balcony this weekend? Tell us in the comments below!