Yes ! This is where i should 'chime in' again! My slabs, while very
functional are not extremely natural looking .... they look thick, and
have the texture of a frosted cake (hard of course) ... I'm going to
try the next time with a natural slab, and put 'muck' around the
perimeter to retain soil ... NOW my question is where do i find the
clay that i'm supposed to mix with peat moss to make my muck ?

(Michael Persiano) wrote in message ...
In a message dated 2/19/2004 12:22:44 PM Eastern Standard Time, writes:

Hi Kevin. You graciously write,
Don't forget to add the magic ingredient - a
proportion of Ordinary Cement, or the rapid
set is not achieved

When my bonsai club created a ciment fondue slabs, they set for at least 24
hours. We might well have used Portland cement-- I would guess that we did.
Is there advantage to rapid-setting other than being "rapid?" Perhaps 24
hour setting is rapid though it would seem painfully slow
for curing our
thin pours.

LaFarge Ciment Fondue should be allowed to slowly cure to avoid cracking and thereby ensure the slab's ability to endure extreme heat and cold. I recommend spraying the slab during the first day of curing.

My personal opinion is that the design of the slab should be the primary concern and not the speed with which the mixture dries. Creating a credible, non-molded slab is a difficult thing to pull off.

Cordially,

Michael Persiano

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