Yep, put them outside.........if...The big question is... how cold does it get where you are? Perhaps you could cover them for light frosts, but considering how hard you will have to prune them to even be coverable, is another concern mainly in terms of upkeep, and reduced avocado output. And that's only if we're talking light frosts. As for keeping them out of the ground, I'd begin by considering whether or not you can realistically grow these to be any larger in your house, before you make them grow too much more! What I would do if you chose to try growing them inside (or at least not in-ground), is to re-pot them in Al's gritty mix (do a search) or, if it's a bagged soil try either a palm and citrus mix or a cactus mix as they will provide better aeration and less sitting water (they drain well). Avocado trees dislike salts (particularly the mexican avocado varieties). All this means is that once you re-pot them, and begin to follow a regular watering schedule, each 3rd or 4th watering you will flood them with an extra gallon or two of water to leech away the salt that has built up. When you think to prune, only worry about your ceiling in your house. So only prune the top of the tree or the tall parts which are causing trouble. Basically the gist is only prune what you must for now. They don't want to be pruned at all. Leave the leaves that are merely yellowing or showing signs of salt burns. Good garden practice asks you remove any diseased or fungal-troubled leaves (the whole thing), so that disease cannot spread to other leaves. Use the appropriate spray for any disease or pest issues. The first thing is the roots though, get those in the right aerated mix and don't over water. Then maybe see what the leaves do. And treat if still needed. Happy roots = happy leaves (most of the time) Have fun! Should be worth it ! -Andrew (new here)

They are more shallow & spread. A thick layer of mulch is ideal

Yes, I agree with Jean and Christine. To my eye, the old damage is from cold exposure. My avocado leaves are fairly beaten up from the cold they experienced this Winter, although the damage isn't quite as extensive as on this plant. Secondly, the pot is very large, the soil is indeed overly wet, and the pot is sitting in a driptray with water still visible. At the very least, I would elevate the container so that it does not sit directly in water and continue to wick moisture back up into the rootzone. I would recommend re-potting this Spring, if the plant survives. The new mix should incorporate much more porous, gritty materials, such as perlite, lava rock, pumice, turface, DE, granite, et cetera. Until Spring, be very careful with watering and give the plant as much light as possible. Josh

I'd be interest to know what is considered a "good avocado soil" :-) IME with containerized trees - and I've grown a lot of all types - it matters very little what kind of specific soil it is as long as it is free draining and with enough texture (ie, bark fines) to avoid compaction or collapse. I would caution against adding sand to container potting soil. Unless a very coarse builders' sand - similar to cherrystone granite grit - the texture is too fine and slows good drainage rather than improves it. I would also suggest that the tree is showing cold damage and perhaps some dryness as well. They will not be as cold tolerant in a container as they would in the ground and could easily suffer some damage at 36F. And I always recommend watering enough at any given time so the water runs freely from the drain holes. You want the potting media fully saturated then allowed to dry moderately before watering again. No schedule!! Just as needed, determined by testing.