Plants have evolved diverse life history strategies to succeed in Earth’s varied environments. Some species grow quickly, produce copious seeds, and die within a few weeks. Other species grow slowly and rarely produce seeds but live thousands of years. We show that simple morphological measurements can predict where a species falls within the global range of life history strategies: species with large seeds, long-lived leaves, or dense wood have population growth rates influenced primarily by survival, whereas individual growth and fecundity have a stronger influence on the dynamics of species with small seeds, short-lived leaves, or soft wood. This finding increases the ability of scientists to represent complex population processes with a few easily measured character traits.