Vertical gardening has become one of the smartest ways to maximize limited outdoor and indoor spaces while adding lush greenery to your walls, balconies, and patios. It’s not just about saving ground space — vertical gardens create beautiful, living walls that cool down your home, purify the air, and provide fresh produce or blooms right at eye level. If you’re planning to start one, choosing fast-growing plants ensures your vertical space fills out quickly and thrives. Here are 9 perfect fast-growing plants for your vertical garden setup.
1. Pole Beans
Pole beans are one of the fastest and easiest climbing vegetables to grow in vertical gardens. They germinate quickly and start producing edible pods in about 50–60 days. Their long, slender vines eagerly wrap around trellises, poles, or wire supports. Popular varieties like Kentucky Wonder and Blue Lake offer high yields of crisp, tender beans perfect for fresh eating, sautéing, or pickling. Pole beans thrive in full sun, well-drained soil, and benefit from regular watering.
2. Sweet Peas
Sweet peas are charming, fragrant flowers that love to climb and bloom within 50–60 days of sowing. Their delicate blossoms come in a wide range of pastel shades, adding a romantic touch to any vertical space. Sweet peas cling to netting, trellises, or garden fences, quickly covering them with their lush foliage and vivid flowers. While they prefer cool weather, they grow well in containers and garden beds alike. Regularly cutting blooms encourages continuous flowering throughout the season.
3. Cucumbers
Cucumbers are classic vertical garden climbers that grow vigorously and fruit quickly, with many varieties maturing in just 50–65 days. Vining cucumbers like Marketmore 76 and Lemon Cucumber thrive on trellises and netting, producing crisp, refreshing fruit throughout the summer. Vertical growth improves air circulation, reducing disease risk and keeping fruits clean and straight. They need full sun, rich soil, and consistent moisture for the best harvests. Cucumbers are perfect for fresh salads, pickling, and cool summer drinks.
4. Nasturtiums
Nasturtiums are edible, fast-growing flowers that are perfect for cascading or climbing vertical spaces. These vibrant blooms appear in just 35–50 days and come in bright hues of red, orange, and yellow. The trailing or climbing varieties, like Tall Climbing Single, easily cover vertical structures, fences, or hanging baskets. Nasturtiums not only add color but also repel pests like aphids and whiteflies. Plus, both their flowers and peppery-tasting leaves can be added to salads and savory dishes.
5. Passionflower (Passiflora)
Passionflower vines are stunning, exotic-looking climbers that grow rapidly and produce breathtaking flowers within 60–80 days. These vigorous growers cling to trellises, fences, and pergolas, filling vertical gardens with intricate blooms and lush foliage. Varieties like Passiflora caerulea offer edible fruits and attract pollinators like bees and butterflies. Passionflowers love full sun, well-drained soil, and regular watering. They’re a beautiful and productive choice for adding drama and color to vertical gardening setups.
6. Tomatoes (Cherry Varieties)
Cherry tomatoes are one of the easiest fast-growing fruits for vertical gardens. Varieties like Sweet 100 and Sun Gold mature in about 55–65 days, producing clusters of juicy, bite-sized tomatoes. Indeterminate types grow tall and need strong cages or trellises for support. Growing them vertically keeps fruits off the ground, improving air circulation and reducing disease risk. These sun-loving plants thrive in containers, garden beds, or hanging baskets and reward you with continuous, flavorful harvests throughout the season.
7. Morning Glory
Morning Glories are classic climbers known for their heart-shaped leaves and beautiful trumpet-shaped flowers. They sprout rapidly and start blooming in just 45–60 days. These easy-to-grow plants climb trellises, arbors, and fences effortlessly, creating colorful walls of blue, purple, pink, and white flowers. Morning Glories thrive in sunny spots with well-drained soil and are drought-tolerant once established. Their blooms open in the morning and close by afternoon, making them a delightful addition to vertical gardens.
8. Peas (Sugar Snap and Snow)
Peas are cool-season, quick-growing vegetables perfect for vertical gardening. Varieties like Sugar Snap and Snow Peas start producing tender, sweet pods in as little as 50–60 days. Their delicate vines climb easily with the help of twine or netting, making them suitable for small garden spaces, patios, or balconies. Peas are nitrogen-fixers, improving soil health as they grow. They love cool weather, full sun to partial shade, and consistently moist, fertile soil for the best yields.
9. Zucchini (Climbing Varieties)
While most zucchini plants spread out, certain vining types like Tromboncino or Zucchetta Rampicante grow vertically and produce quickly, typically fruiting in 50–60 days. When grown on sturdy trellises, these vigorous climbers save space and produce straighter, cleaner fruits. They thrive in warm, sunny conditions with regular watering and rich, well-drained soil. Vertical zucchinis make harvesting easier and prevent fruits from rotting on the ground, making them a smart choice for space-saving vegetable gardens.
Final Thoughts
Vertical gardening opens up endless possibilities for small-space and urban gardeners. With these 9 fast-growing plants, you can enjoy lush greenery, colorful blooms, and fresh produce in a matter of weeks. From classic climbers like morning glories and nasturtiums to practical edibles like pole beans and cherry tomatoes, these plants will quickly transform your walls, fences, and balconies into thriving vertical oases.
Pro Tip: Mix flowering climbers with edible vines in the same vertical setup for a balanced, beautiful, and productive garden.
