3 weeks to turn wilderness into garden - what can I plant/do?

[Bluebear]

We have a patch of scrubby grass and one border with a single hypericum (..I think) in, some unidentified bulbs that have sprouted and nowt else.
The house is going up for sale in 3 weeks and I no nothing about gardening. Is there anything I can plant at this time of year to make it more cheerful?
I have loads of empty ceramic/terracotta style pots, are there any plants/bulbs I can put in those..ditto for a windowbox.
Oh, and is it possible to re-turf this time of year?

Thanks in advance for any advice.

I'd buy lots of bulbs (daffs, mostly) in pots that are almost in flower and then pot them on into your terracotta ones. You could also buy some nice elegant evergreens - small conifers, box shapes, ivy grown on a frame etc - these look good all the time and would be a good investment if your house doesn't sell immediately. Wouldn't worry too much about the lawn, none look good in January. If you get a dry day give it a cut. You can get winter flowering pansies and colured primrose things but they aren't everyone's cup of tea - if going for these I suggest buying only one colour or maybe two - you can't go wrong with blue and yellow in combo.

You could do a similar thing but keep it all in pots. That way you can take them away with you when you go. Its easy to spend a fortune on plants. I would be wary of spending too much at this time of year. A spell of strong winds and rain (like today) could flatten the lot and its never going to look fab at this time of year.

Shrubs will make the most impact but are also the most expensive.

What about posting on freecycle and see if anyone has any plants they can give you.

Or even beg and borrow friends pots - you can return them once sold!