Do you have any rocks? I use rocks. I read on another forum someone used ceramic tiles she/he had on hand, turning them so the points are up and pressing them into the soil.

Border?....why just a well trimmed and spade edged garden is wonderful.
Border??? That's confining....I have spent the past 30 years....spade edging my beds just a bit larger each year.
I got talked into a brick edging 2 years ago....and spent last evening moving that out....just about 4 inches! LOL!
Linda C

the perennial form of alyssum. better than any kind of edging I've come up with. they bloom early in the spring when nothing but the bulbs are up, then you trim the stalks down, and you have a simple, soft green border that needs nothing the rest of the year.

I use broken concrete to define my raised beds because I like the 'garden wall' look...but I think that most edgings are just a hassle- especially if you're ever intending to enlarge your border, like Linda pointed out.

I like alyssum, too, but I use the annual. Of course, this far south, it reseeds itself readily. I don't know about PA... what zone are you in? I'm in z7. I planted seeds of the purple alyssum around the edges of my beds, but around here you can also purchase little 6-packs of it already started. Bear in mind... each one (as small as it may seem) will spread about a foot all around so don't plant them too close! It reseeds every year AND looks fabulous! I've only seen seed packets of yellow in the perennial and it says on the packet that it won't bloom til the 2nd year (but there are probably other kinds, too, that aren't sold around here). It's drought tolerant and likes full sun in my yard.
Gail

I'm in zone 6, though the south corner of my house thinks it's 7, I get irises the first week of april, a month ahead of the rest of my garden!

I've never seen the perennial form in anything but yellow either- but it's one of the nicest yellows i've ever seen, bright but soft, and a little on the cool side. I bought mine in a pot for a buck at the end of the season, and it's quintupled in size in two years, letting me chop it up and lay it out in a string, instead of the clump that it formed.

the annuals are really pretty- have some growing in my front bed as we speak, but this is their first year, so I'll have to see if they reseed.