if there is no drainage.. they should have planted high .. i suspect too much water ... if there is little drainage.. in a clay based soil .. throwing some rocks in the bottom of a clay cauldron is not a solution ... water trees.. when they need water.. not on a timer 'system' .. plus deep waterings in addition ... most trees need to nearly dry in between waterings .... though apparently your rain forest plants dont mind.. a tree might ... i do not favor fertilizing an already stressed tree .... you wouldnt give a sick child some steroids to bulk up .... while his feet are rotting in a swamp .... hows that for mixing metaphors .... lol only a soil test will tell you.. what if anything is missing from the soil .... all that said.. it is CA.. and i wouldnt be surprised at all if one with CA background thinks otherwise ... good luck ken

Tony, did you ever find out what was ailing your Camphor? I have one in a large container (basically live in a parking lot :() that developed pin hole spots on its leaves, browned leaf margins and then tips of many new branches browning/ rotting. This seemed to start at end of excessive rains last year so I suspected root rot, but when I re-potted it, it didn't seem to have such. Now new growth is developing same symptoms.

I strongly suggest you get rid of the tree. There are two camphor trees by my house. One is by the sidewalk up front of my home and the other is between my home and my neighbor's in the backyard. The tree in the back is mostly in my neighbor's property, but has grown onto my side by growing through the fence. Although these trees are beautiful, provide nice shade and have a nice scent, they are very messy with the dropping of leaves and seeds which sprout all over the place. The tree out front grows right into the power lines and is trimmed by the City (not often enough). Some branches grow towards my home and I have to cut them back because they can damage my roof. The tree in the back is near my pool and the seeds and leaves always end up in the pool. I try to trim those branches I can reach, but it just grows back too quickly. Both trees are huge so know that yours will not stay at 10 feet, and the three feet away you moved it to will not be far enough from your pool!

I am really leaning toward removing the one in the front yard for sure, but the one in the back yard is so large it would definitely cost a pretty penny to have removed. So it will get a reprieve for now while I attack the Brazilian peppers trying to get a foothold back there. I do have some cardinals I see every year and I love those birds so I will consider planting a red bay should I remove the camphor in the back yard. I have never seen berries on the one in the front yard, maybe it takes a while for them to fruit? So I don't think the cardinals would mind if I removed that one. I kind of have my heart set on some sort of fruit tree for the front yard and I don't have much space anywhere else for a tree. The big camphor shares the back yard with a good sized loquat. I don't think any other tree could get enough sun back there. I guess I could put a red bay in the front and then when I can get the other camphor removed I can put my fruit tree in the back yard. The camphor takes up so much room that I might be able to get two fruit trees back there. I am a tree hugger and the idea of cutting down trees does bother me but I have seen what that darned punk tree has done to this state (and me, they really set off my asthma) and I don't want to contribute to helping another invasive tree. I do actually like the smell of the camphor but I don't think that's enough reason to keep it. Hey, I wonder if I could grow one bonsai size? ; ) Thanks for all the responses, You've given me some more to think about.