Cheflara, Yes, the anchors are entirely plastic. The anchor requires first drilling a pilot hole into the container. Then you hammer the plastic anchor into the hole. Then you twist the blunt end of the eye bolt into the interior threads of the anchor. The hole for the anchor needs to be exactly the correct diameter. Wide enough to accept the anchor, but tight enough that the angled plastic flanges cannot slip back out through the hole. Today I gave the hollow door/wall anchor a test. I tried the anchor on an empty bucket I have in the house. I drilled a correct diameter hole, hammered the anchor into place, and then twisted the eye bolt into the anchor. After twisting the eye bolt into the anchor I applied all my strength trying to pull the bolt out. It didnÂt budge. BUT WAIT!!!! I found an even better idea. And much easier. Along with eye bolts, Home Depot also sells something called a Screw Eye. It is the same as an eye bolt, but it is a screw with a sharp point rather than a bolt with a blunt end. The other end is the same as an eye bolt, a closed metal loop into which you can fit a thick bamboo stake. The Screw Eye doesnÂt require a hollow door/wall anchor. It doesnÂt require drilling a pilot hole either. You can simply screw it directly into the container. You merely need a hammer to puncture the container wall to get the screw eye started and then you can finish by easily twisting it by hand into the container. As a test, I tried my very best to pull the screw eye out. IÂm a very big guy with a very muscular back, but if I kept trying, my back would have given out before the screw did. I am sold on screw eyes. A package of 3 zinc screw eyes is only 93 cents at Home Depot. You can see what this looks like on a 5-Gallon plastic bucket by copy/pasting this URL into your browser: http://community.webshots.com/myphotos?action=showPhoto&albumID=421746491&photoID=421795755&security=JKqdhc Now if only I can figure out how to keep the squirrels away. IÂm thinking a combination of ammonia, moth balls, sacks of dog hair, a rubber snake, and fox urine pellets. The Family Dollar Store also sells a motion detector barking dog lawn ornament for $5. Also pin wheels that spin in the wind for $2. Ace Hardware sells a plastic owl for $16. Here is a link that might be useful: Bucket with Screw Eyes

Thanks Jen Rick

The original poster's problem was : "But what I don't love is that they sit on the tomato stakes in the garden and crap all over the plants." This is a different issue that also I have to some extent. Apparently some birds have nests in the trees, maybe also have chicks. So the come and go and sit on top of stakes an poo. I find it just a petty annoyance nothing more. But birds pecking on tomatoes is a different issue. The do than mostly to get some juice. By leaving dishes of water, bird bath around you can minimize that. Sey

Could be mice as well, since it is their style to sheer off small plants. However, it's been my experience that they will drag the parts they take to "hiding places", such as underneath bushes or wood chips. You generally don't find them in open areas, but they will run along the foundations of a house, for example, or along fence walls or along rows of bushes -- anywhere they are not too exposed to predators. One way to tell is to set out some small (4 to 6-inch or smaller) marigold plants and see if something comes along and sheers off the flowers. They also seem to like to gnaw off new guinea impatiens. Anyhow, when I was hardening off tomato and pepper seedlings, I put them in dappled shade near the foundation of the house and found many of them cut down. Looked like someone came through with scissors and clipped them all off. A few years back they did the same with marigolds, and I kept accusing my kids of cutting off the flowers. Later we found the marigold flowers under the bushes. Once the mouse was dispatched the devastation stopped. But there are always more mice and they don't stay away forever. :-) This is just a suggestion. I've never seen birds get destructive with tomato plants. I know they will sometimes go after fruit, but seedlings are a different story. Rodents, on the other hand, are pretty much everywhere and they seem to enjoy lopping off seedlings. Have you encountered any snakes lately? If so, that might also indicate that there are wee rodents about. Even the ubiquitous garter snake will go after young rodents. Just a suggestion as to what the problem might be. Sorry about the loss of your plants. It is disappointing to lose plants after you put so much time and thought into them.