Double cheat

I like to grow things from seed or small starts, but this is a big yard and a huge project. So today I was at the local department store, Fred Meyer, and decided that the price on the primroses and the pansies was low enough that I could risk frost. Actually, this early in the year frost is a fact. And these are sun loving plants and this spot gets a bit of winter sun, but by summer there won't be any more sun in this spot. it will be shady and that will be true until we get the low morning light again in the late fall. Actually there is a third cheat here, too. Because of the roots of the big, old spruce tree, I can't dig a proper bed. Certainly not 24 inches and really not even 18. So here, where I made this bed in November, the ground is disturbed about a foot and most of the soil here is duff from old junipers and pine needles. I did add some mulch, but this soil is pretty acid and thin and because of the 3 pine trees on the corner, it always will be. So I will enjoy my quick fix for as long as it lasts and if the plants get in too much trouble in the next month or so I will bring them into the garage for a few weeks and put them in some sunnier clime after that.