Any seeds I can plant that will flower this year?

[Batsypatsy]

I'm moving in a week and will have a small yard with not much sun. I'd like to plant pots but on a budget. Is there anything I can plant that will flower this year?

I've tried nasturtiums before but they barely flowered because they became covered in black fly and I can't spray because my cats chew things in the garden.

Just looking for something cheap and cheerful.

Semper florens begonias are good in shade and don't need deadheading. No idea how easy they are to grow from seed but they are cheap as plug plants.

I've also been successful with violas in the planters at my door, which don't get much sun.

Longer term, you could try some hostas for your planters: will come up every year, are good in shade and will look great as a contrast to flowers.

But a beast for attracting slugs, if that's a problem in your garden.

I say do any or all of the above but also buy a foxglove plant. It might not do all that much this year but it's ideal for shade, and will self seed around like mad and will pop up beautifully this time next year. But dont bother spending extra on a specific colour one they hardly ever come back the colouur you bought them, they normally end up mauvey purple.

Also, if you have shady walls, now's the time to look into clematis, rose and hydrangeas which will suit the position. You'll be delighted this time next year when they have all had a year of settling in and are ready to go.

Also look at summer flowering bulbs such as lilies. If they're nicely suited to their position they will also grow reliably year after year.

Also if you have any gardener friends they might be dividing their perennials. Taking a little clump of purple geranium Roxanne or Johnson's blue is almost an act of kindness to overwhelmed gardeners, and the cover the ground with beautiful flowers year after year.

(Posted too soon- they do well in shady spots.) And also those big giant daisies for late summer. They make a lovely big bush for the shade, and in years to come you'll probably be happy to pass on clumps of it. Tbh they don't smell great when you are up close, so put something sweeter near the door.

Thompson & Morgan have offers at the moment. You could enter the term 'shade loving plants' into their website and you'd find some decent options. I've ordered plug plants from them recently and was very pleased with my order.

... Just seconding other posters, Morrisons are great value for plants. They had some lovely clematis (which is shade tolerant) last time I was in there; if I recall correctly they were £1.79 for a small plant. Top tip with clematis is to buy one with at least 2 stems at the base (if you can get 3 + that's even better).

I also love Morrisons.
So many of my plants are from there, I bought a lovely, decently sized pot of ajuga yesterday for £1.50.

With the lillies, I personally think they should be houseplant only as they are actually poisonous to bees (along with oleander, azalea, rhododendron) and are horrifically poisonous to cats.
They only have to lick a tiny smattering if pollen off their fur and it came send them into fatal renal failure.

Thanks for the tips. There actually is a pot with lilies in the garden already so I'll get rid of that because of the cats (and bees).

I never knew that about lilies !