Thanks a lot ctnchpr, I'm glad to know I'm not doing too bad :) What you recommend about misting doesn't sound different from the sprinkling I said in my first post I do everyday, am I missing something? Ok, I'll let the leaf rest in peace... Some say to cut them when they are wilting for the others to have more energy, this one looks wilting but doesn't look dead yet to me... So I guess I should wait for it to be "dead"? I'll replace the upper soil layer as you indicate. I presume there's no need to wait for spring or any time to do this. One doubt though is that I read mixing soils could do more harm than benefit... Does this apply to "feeder roots top" soil? And if yes Is there anything one can do so that it doesn't become problematic?

Necrotic tips & margins are usually an indication there isn't enough water making its way to these more distal plant parts, so the tissue is dying. Usually, the primary cause is poor root health and impaired root function due to a lack of oxygen in the root zone. Another cause might be a high level of dissolved solids (salts) in the soil solution, which increases in likelihood as a problem if you water in small sips instead of flushing the soil when you water, or allow the plant to sit in the effluent that collects in a saucer beneath the plant. There are secondary contributors (like low humidity, but these are the two conditions that have the most impact on dead leaf tips/margins. Getting the plant in an appropriate soil (one you can water to beyond saturation w/o the need to worry about extended periods of sogginess wrecking root health and limiting root function) goes a LONG way toward curing a number of ills associated with poor rootage. Al

Jayme needs a haircut. ;-) "I don't believe I'm heavy handed on watering because it rarely floods through the drainage hole at the bottom of the pot and when this does happen I always empty the tray so that it's not standing in water." We know your soil holds water, but let me show you why your contention doesn't. Let's say I have a horrible soil that holds 6" of perched water at container capacity. Since that's probably Greek to most growers, it means that after gravity is done pushing water out of a recently saturated soil and it has JUST stopped draining, the bottom 6" of soil is fully saturated and essentially airless. This means that the function of ALL roots within that 6" tall column of saturated soil is being limited by a lack of oxygen. Using your contention, everything is fine if I only add enough water to raise the ht of the saturated soil column to 5-7/8", because water won't drain until the ht of the saturated soil column is greater than 6". Essentially, there is no difference of note between a saturated soil column of 6" vs 5-7/8"; which means that over-watering is surely in play as a potential limitation. Too, if you water consistently so no water exits the pot, you ensure ALL the dissolved solids in fertilizer solutions and tapwater remain in the soil. This increases the mineral salt level in the soil (TDS) and can very quickly skew the ratio of a singular nutrient to all of the others, which creates another significant issue. I can clearly see from the list of ingredients that you unwittingly made a very water-retentive soil. Compare what your soil looks like to these soils, which are what I grow in: You can clearly see there are going to be large pores between the high % of large particles that will be filled w/air instead of water after the soil stops draining subsequent to being saturated. Ideally, you would move in that direction. I promise it will make a BIG difference in your ability to manage your plants' moisture and fertility needs. This will provide information that will help you turn your plant around. and This link, which goes into considerable detail about How Water Behaves in Container Soils, probably represents the largest step forward you can make as a container gardener. If you make the effort to understand the concept it outlines, it should change the way you look at container media and significantly increase the rewards you get from your growing efforts. Al

That roots aren't dead should not be taken as indication they are functioning normally. Too much water in the grow medium limits the root's oxygen supply and thereby limits root function whether or not the soggy conditions open the door to a rot-causing fungal infection. Many growers reason incorrectly that because PLs are often found in riparian (waterside) settings, it must follow that they like or prefer a wet or boggy grow medium. This is not the case. Roots of PLs adapt easily to any of several forms of water culture, but during that adaptation the root structure morphs to allow air from above the waterline to diffuse through root tissues in order to provide oxygen to burn the fuel (food/ carbohydrate/ sugar) that powers the metabolic function of roots. So instead of roots being filled with parenchymous tissues common to terrestrial plants, aquatic plants or those adapted to some form of water culture will be filled with the airy tissue aerenchyma. This means roots are unable to make the rapid (for plants) and endless cyclic of transitioning from too much water in the medium to an appropriate amount when their care giver has a hand too heavy on the watering can. Misting, thrips, over/under-watering, and a high level of dissolved solids (salts) in the soil solution can cause the symptoms shown in the OP. Al