Of all the plant species, only a handful make a competitive case in the race for fastest-growing plant in the world. However, while this distinction may appear easy to determine, deciding which plant grows the fastest is a more nuanced task than you would expect. The main issue in this debate is whether you classify growth speed by how much a plant can add to its height or if you place more value on increasing sheer biomass.
For example, if you think the honor of fastest-growing plant should belong to the plant that can increase its height the quickest, then bamboo would be the winner. There are numerous species of bamboo plants, and several of them can grow nearly three feet in one day. Amazingly, these plants can register a speed of growth of around .00002/mph. While that speed seems inconsequential in most other contexts, seeing a plant with a growth rate that is reasonably measurable in miles per hour is a testament to the speed with which bamboo grows.
However, if you believe that the plant that can increase its biomass most quickly is the fastest-growing, then bamboo does not earn the top spot. Instead, by the biomass metric, a plant known as duckweed is likely the fastest-growing plant. Duckweed plants, which include 11 species in the Wolffia genus, are tiny aquatic plants that grow on the surface of the water. These plants are not only small but are also incredibly simple as they each consist of a single stem and leaf with no roots or any other physical features. When a group of duckweed plants grows in ideal conditions, it can double its mass in just 16 hours. That astounding growth rate has yet to be matched by any other plant species on Earth.
Many other plants deserve mention among the fastest-growing plants in the world. One such plant is the kudzu plant, which is a vine species that can grow about one foot in a single day. Other plants, such as annual and perennial flowers, herbs, and vegetables, are known to grow incredibly fast from seed. While these plants don’t come close to matching the size of a fast-growing vine or a bamboo plant, they do achieve their mature sizes at an impressive rate.
While the fastest-growing plants in the world are worthy of praise for their growth rates, they can often cause a lot of damage to ecosystems as well. Many of the fastest-growing plant species are also highly invasive and will wreak havoc when they expand beyond their natural growing ranges. These rapid growth rates and a common ability to adapt to generally poor growing conditions allow invasive plants to easily outcompete beneficial native species, which can have a dramatic effect on local food chains.
Still, knowing the topic of fast-growing plants is a fascinating one and is a worthy area of study. Just remember that deciding on which plant species are the fastest comes down to whether you measure an increase in height or an overall growth in biomass. In the former case, bamboo plants prove to be the fastest, while duckweed is the plant variety that can increase its mass most quickly.