Hi. A long background, before my question: I'm making an outdoor shade umbrella stand, using a PVC pipe, in a large planter pot. The idea is to then fill it with some potting soil and plant some flowers in it. I put a layer of pebbles and on it poured a 5 inch layer of concrete (it was of good consistency). As it did not seem to be heavy enough (to withstand windy conditions), I decided to add some more concrete. My second batch of concrete was too watery (slush consistency), but as it was all the concrete I had left, I poured it on. It set within ~24 hours (I had dowels in it, so water could seep through and the dowel holes stayed clear after I pulled them out). However - the top layer of concrete has not fully dried, although it has been a week, since I poured it. It has a consistency of partially dried mud - I can leave my fingerprint impression on it, or pinch off a piece and it will crumble in my hand. As can be seen in the pictures, the lower layer of concrete has dried and taken on a light gray color, while the upper layer is light brown in color. The questions: 1. Will it eventually dry out? 2. Is there any point delaying putting the potting soil on it and planting some flowers in the pot? 3. Will the "bad" cement level adversely effect the flowers, in some way? Can it turn moldy, for example? 4. Is there some other solution, I may not be thinking of, to fix my project? Thank you! M.E.[ATTACH]71287[/ATTACH][ATTACH]71288[/ATTACH][ATTACH]71289[/ATTACH]

I've helped do some concrete work before but it's been years since I've done any. I have this small patch of dirt in the front of our house that I want to fill. I want to have the surface have an angle down, away from the foundation so water won't pool near the house and will drain way. How deep should I make the area to be filled. Is gravel a good idea as the substrate? My friend has a hand compactor tool I can borrow. Can I make a cross section Control Joint? Just one horizontal and vertical line? The area is about maybe 4'W X 5'L The first picture is the area I'm talking about, but in the second picture, the surrounding pathway has also cracked and caved in a bit. I also want to remove and repair those. Should I have a seem that divides the two sections? **Note - I'll be removing those rocks that line the edge of the area. [URL=http://s157.photobucket.com/user/Beedoola/media/20161012_114340_zpsutjqy8vh.jpg.html][IMG]http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t54/Beedoola/20161012_114340_zpsutjqy8vh.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s157.photobucket.com/user/Beedoola/media/20161012_114543_zpsqkpzj4yu.jpg.html][IMG]http://i157.photobucket.com/albums/t54/Beedoola/20161012_114543_zpsqkpzj4yu.jpg[/IMG][/URL]