I think my Avocado Tree is dying

7 years ago

A week ago I noticed my beautiful, healthy, lush Avocado tree was completely wilted. My first thought was water. But, it rained, downpours every day.

Then the leaves started falling off. The tree is 4 years old, at least 20 ft and I counted 10 Avocado's.

These photos are from last week. Today it is almost totally bare. Ground covered with all its leaves.

We are heartbroken. Any ideas???

Jane

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Comments (7)

dirtygardener73
7 years ago
last modified: 7 years ago
First, is that a seed-grown avocado, or a grafted avocado? If it's seed-grown, the nematodes have probably killed it.

If it's grafted, it could be two things:

1) root rot - in which case there is not much you can do or

2) it was too dry for too long and the soil isn't holding water. Sometimes, even when it pours for days after being dry for so long, the water just runs off the soil and doesn't soak in.

Dig out a little of the soil a few inches down at the drip line (end of the limbs) and see if it's dry. Also, look for pests in the soil while you're at it, because during drought, lawn grubs will eat roots to get water.

If it's dry, put the hose at the base of the tree about a foot out and let it trickle all day to really water the plant. If it's too wet, then I'm afraid you probably have root rot. Look for signs of fungus in the soil, like white mycelium (white stringy stuff or clods of white dirt).

Unfortunately, root rot that has gone this far is probably untreatable. You can try, though, by cutting the tree back by 1/2 and drenching the soil weekly with a lawn fungicide. Not much else you can do, really. The cutting back is so the plant doesn't have to put energy into supporting leaves and can spend its energy to heal. Also, a cup of epsom salts around the bottom might encourage new root growth.

To know for sure if it's root rot, you have to dig up the tree and look at the roots.

Sorry, that's all I've got.
whgille
7 years ago
Google wilt laurel disease in avocados, maybe? Hope not.
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Avo's are very suseptable to root rot. I'd guess that 90% or more of tree loss, especially new trees, is from that. Too much water. once you have lost one tree to it in a planting area, the next tree will have a very high chance of dying from it to (it's prevalent in the soil now), so be sure to try a spot several feet away if you try again. good luck
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I have to disagree with jean001 a little. New potting soil (looks like yours has some perlite as well) will not compact and/or dry out such that it pulls away from the edge of the pot, and water runs right through without wetting it. Given the size of your pot, and the amount you're watering, I'd say it's been too wet. Avocados like well-drained soil, on the slightly dry side. A new tree, with few roots to absorb and transpire water, doesn't require much. As it grows and water needs increase, it can use more, but easy does it. As jean001 suggested, growing in a pot is MUCH different than in the ground. Care must be taken to maintain the correct soil moisture. There are perhaps a few avocado varieties that will produce in a container, but it would have to be a very large container. Also, you'll get few, if any, fruits, without cross-pollination. If you maintain a drier pot, and keep an eye on moisture levels further down in the mix before watering, it's possible your tree will come back. The way it's looking at the moment, I'd give it about a 30-40% chance. Also, small avocados are prone to sunburn -- don't keep it in direct sun all day. Shade it slightly, and/or paint the trunk. -Bruce
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At this point, I would not move it anymore but wait out the rest of the winter. Lay off the watering and keep the soil on the dry side. If in doubt about watering now--DON't. DO NOT FERTILIZE! Mist the remaining leaves and stems frequently if you can. When the weather warms and settles, place it outside into a protected, deeply shaded spot until it acclimates (a couple of weeks), then move it into full sun. Once it is shows signs of new growth, you can start watering more and start fertilizing. (I move most of my citrus out by early April to the south side of the house--but, being near the coast, excessively wet or chilly conditions may still force me to drag some back into the garage until late April.) Citrus really have a problem with indoor heating during our winter season. This is why I keep almost all my citrus in a garage where the winter temp is maintained in the 40-60 degree range. Under these conditions I never experience any leaf drop with the citrus (lemons, oranges, kumquats, limequats, etc.) Limes tend to like it a bit warmer than other citrus but they still suffer in our homes in the winter. The only citrus I currently have in the house is a Kaffir lime as they are more tropical; it's on a radiator and is actually doing very well (something must citrus would HATE). Having said all this, I suspect that your tree should make it (still having green stems is a good sign.) Good luck!
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If you fertilized using that Fantastik Heavy Duty well that could be a problem! :-P It might be too early to fertilize anyway, a young avocado still gets its nutrients from the pit while it's attached. I don't have much experience with grow lights, so I can't say if the avo is getting enough proper lighting... so the yellowing on the leaves would point towards a watering problem. The soil is not the best (esp for drying quick enough--which is essential for preventing root rot), but you might work with it by careful watering. Simply, I'd mix in more perlite. Also, I do not see a tray for that pot, or the size of the holes (if any) and I'd be worried about not having enough drainage, but hard to tell from just photo. As a guideline, water when the leaves start to droop noticeably, and only then use like two shotglasses of water to that soil you're currently using. Also, to me the plant looks like it's planted shallow, I cannot imagine there is enough room for roots to develop and that could be stunting its growth. If you're going to raise it up to repot then that would be a good time to mix some better soil, perhaps sift out some of the black powdery stuff. But maybe hold off on anything drastic since you just repotted it. In the meantime find out more about good soil, and start looking to acquire the neccessary ingredients without spending too much cash. DIY avocados shouldn't really cost anything otherwise it defeats the whole purpose! ...your plant will live regardless, but you want it to also thrive!
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jane__ny
Original Author
7 years ago
Grafted Avocado. Name on label 'Marcus Pumpkin Avocado.' Purchased four years ago and it has grown beautifully and large. It is now about 25 feet and 8-10 ft wide.

I live in Sarasota and we've had torrential rains for the past month. It has poured every day with strong thunder and lightening. Today it poured for at least 4 hours.

I went out this morning and dug down to see if the soil was set and it was. I went down about 8 inches.

Whgille, thank you for the suggestion. I did Google it and I suppose it is a possibility although it does not have any sign of borers that I can see. I looked over the trunk and large branches and see no sawdust or those needle-like things which are left by borers. This morning the tree is almost bare. The fruit is still hanging and I'm thinking I should pick them.

I don't know what would have caused this sudden death. I'm sure its dying. The terminal shoots are all brown and dead. It almost appears that it was never watered or the roots were severed. This all started about three weeks ago. Up to that point the tree was healthy and growing.

If it is Laurel Wilt, than we lost the tree. I'm thinking of calling a tree expert in to diagnosis what happened.

If anyone could recommend a tree expert in the Sarasota/Manatee area, I would appreciate it.

Jane

Photos taken this morning:
Terminal buds dead
Looks dead to me.

Heartbreaking and very strange.

Jane
bea (zone 9a -Jax area)
7 years ago
Jane my heart breaks for you. It's so awful to lose such a beautiful tree. Please let us know what you find out. BTW abCERTIFIED arborist is what you should look for.
dirtygardener73
7 years ago
I'm so sorry for your loss. It is heartbreaking when something you've nurtured and loved dies like that.
suncoastflowers
7 years ago
That is heartbreaking. I am so sorry.
bea (zone 9a -Jax area)
7 years ago
Jane any news?

I think my Avocado Tree is dying

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I think my Avocado Tree is dying

Comments (7)

dirtygardener73

whgille

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bea (zone 9a -Jax area)

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jane__ny
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