Get Perfect Garden Borders—in Just 10 Minutes

Alicia W
by Alicia W
6 Materials
$20
10 Minutes
Easy
You can make your garden borders look perfectly pristine for almost no money, by using things you have around your home! It just takes a few quick steps—watch the 1 minute video below to see how to amp up your garden in a flash.

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BEFORE:


AFTER:
Isn't that so pretty? And it was my least expensive outdoor update yet!


I really love how each border shapes the space differently and brings more color and beauty to my little garden. I think I'll have to use a different border for every season, because it's impossible to choose a favorite.


Most of the supplies came from around my home, but you can also find anything you need for this project by going to the thrift store or keeping your eyes out for curbside salvages. The plates and glass bottles are a classic thrift store staple. The pallet wood might be more of a salvage story.


If you want to see each idea broken down, checkout the full project details below.


Project Details:
Here's what my front walkway looked like before. I love my little hosta garden (like, a lot!) but I was nervous about it spilling into the path.
Number 1 - Bottles
Soak off the labels in hot water and scrub any remaining glue from the labels.
Using a rubber mallet, gently tape the bottles into the soil. The more bottles you have, the closer you can put them together. They don’t need to be exactly the distance you see in the video, but just make sure to space them out enough so that you’re not packing them in too tightly and risking any broken bottles.
Number 2 - Plates
Carefully tap your plates into the ground using a rubber mallet. If the ground is especially hard, dig a trench before you insert the plates. Make sure not to tap them too hard or you might have some broken shards to deal with. Just watch how I do it in the video to get a clearer picture.
Number 3 - Pallet/Scrap Wood
Gently tap the wood into the soil using a rubber mallet. You can vary the heights, colors, and sizes of the wood or make it all one height using the same wood.
Number 4 - Aluminum Flashing
Wearing gloves, fold down the top of the edge as it is sharp. It's definitely unique, but this is a very sleek and industrial look.
Number 5 - Rope Lighting
Using landscape pins, secure the rope lighting to the top of the edge of your border. It sounds a little confusing, but look how simple it is in the video. And isn’t that nighttime glow just magical?


See how each of the borders turned out in the video above! At least one of these is bound to tickle your green thumb!
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Frequently asked questions
Have a question about this project?
3 of 13 questions
  • Doris Doris on May 09, 2020

    No after photos?!

  • Elaine Elaine on May 10, 2020

    Great video and really good ideas

    Thanks

  • Zeze Zeze on Jun 07, 2022

    Wonderful ideas!! Which one did you go with??

Comments
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2 of 50 comments
  • Betty Betty on Jun 24, 2022

    Disappointed video link never loaded. Sounds like a unique project.

  • Hilda Hilda on Nov 27, 2022

    Please repost video link. It isn’t showing.

    thank you! Looks like something I might like to try.


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