first.. there is a tropical fruit forum.. as well as a fruit forum.. you might find some real expertise in either ... or both .... maybe even the houseplant forum ..... next.. any tree in a pot.. most likely.. does not like that kind of media... unless As are somehow different.. which i doubt ... trees like a sip of water.. and then drainage.. a high peat reinforced high peat media.. is too much peat in one sentence ... let alone in a pot ... google: als gritty mix ... al is from GW ... but google is the better search engine ... an alternative.. if you dont need yards and yards of mix.. is a cactus mix .... the damage itself.. looks like sunburn... but if you are rotting all the roots off.. the leaf burn can happen ... at least you have an endless supply of seed... lol ... your plant is severely stressed ... it is NOT hungry.. fertilizer is not recommended .... until the top buds show proper growth ... on some level.. you MIGHT be loving these things to death .... and in this case its a high water rention media... and i bet you are watering it all the time ... or i am wrong ... change the media.. with damp media... water it once to settle it in .... and then dont water it again.. UNTIL IT NEEDS WATER .... insert finger.. and find out ... and once you learn how to do that.. you can do it by pot weight.. not watering until the pot loses half its water weight.. or so ... some greenhouses dont water.. until the first signs of droop ... as a sign of when the plant itself.. thinks it needs water .. ken ps: your media.. is near bog like... these things grow in the near deserts of CA ... think about that .... and if the light goes on.. you will come to understand how bipolar your media is ...

This early after planting, it's important to keep the rootball evenly moist. Doing so often requires that the water be applied directly to that area. Every other day for 15 minutes may be accomplishing that, or it may be keeping the soil too wet. The only way to know for certain is to stick a finger, or a trowel, in the soil, then look/feel. Avocados require excellent drainage. Because of that, the frequent recommendation is to mound up the soil in the planting area to at least 8 inches, then plant the tree in the center of the mound. In that way, one can avoid excess water at the crown of the tree. Soggy soil is the all too frequent reason for root rot in avocados. Unfortunately, no treatment is available to stop root rot once it begins. I suggest you contact your county's Extension Service office. More than likely they can offer specific suggestions for an avocado in a home garden. Locate contact info for the Ventura County's office using this map: http://www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/ Jean, who gardened for 30-some years in Long Beach, CA Here is a link that might be useful: locate your county's Extension Service office

Take 2 on posting my response...since the original didnt post the week or so ago.... I'd love to get the tree more light, but I live in a small apt, and only have a VERY small entry balcony that I share w/ 1 neighbor and this time of year especially only gets like 6-8 hrs of direct sunlight When I water, the water does drain, but has a tendency to sit for a few seconds on top before it all soaks in. The potting mix is something generic my garden designer friend used when we re-potted it in the spring. I feel that it's time to re-pot it again since I've noticed the main root trying to grow out of the hole at the bottom of the pot, but I dont have any deeper pots to put it in. I have one that's wider, but not deeper. Fertilizing? I'm just a poor student that's developed a sudden desire for growing things...this is a hobby going crazy and I dont really have money to get fertalizers. I hope to be starting a vermicompost bin soon so I might be able to get some worm tea in the future to use.

Hi there, I got the same problem in a similar climate (north Croatia). Got this tree around Christmas last year (Dec 2016), it had around 3-4 big leaves below the new three above (on the pic) that all slowly turned brown from the tip to the base, dried and fell off. These three were ok up until a week ago when one of them started the process — drying from the tip. At the same time, I can see that new ones are coming out from the top. The soil is a regular mix, should I repot into cacti soil? Is it possible that overwatering could lead to this? Thanks