Consider one of these fun ideas to top a large dowel or a bamboo stake (from left): a terra-cotta pot, large wood beads, a twist of copper wire strung with beads and stuck in a cork, a drawer knob, a refrigerator magnet in the shape of a watering can, a wooden pinwheel spruced up with acrylic paint, or a plastic holiday ornament.

There are several ways to attach your decoration to the top of the stake. Copper wire wrapped several times around the stake and your whimsy can hold it and be decoration unto itself. Use a thinner, galvanized wire or fishing line for a less obvious tiedown. Polyuretahne adhesive will also hold; just use clamps to hold the pieces together until it dries.