Agricultural and gardening activities during the shemitah year

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Agricultural and gardening activities during the shemitah year

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Action	Home Garden	*Heter Mechirah*	*Otzar Beit Din* Subject to the rabbinical court's guidelines
Preparing the ground for planting (marking holes in the ground, setting up trellises, stakes, etc.)	√	√	√
Sowing seeds	×	➡ Permitted by a non-Jew	×
Plowing/digging to sow/plant	×	➡ Permitted by a non-Jew	×
Planting – vegetables	×	➡ Permitted by a non-Jew	×
Planting – trees	×	×	×
Grafting	×	➡ When necessary (for filler plants) – permitted by a non-Jew in a hothouse	×
Watering	√	√	√
Fertilizing	× Instead, apply slow-release fertilizer before shemitah	√	√
Covering trees with netting to prevent pests from entering	√	√	√
Removing rocks	× To prepare for planting/sowing √ To prepare a path – pile the stones next to the dirt work	➡ To prepare for planting/sowing – permitted by a non-Jew √ To prevent damage to agricultural vehicles, etc.	× To prepare for planting/sowing √ To prevent damage to agricultural vehicles, etc.
Training onto a trellis	× To increase growth √ To prevent damage to the tree	√	× To increase growth √ To prevent damage to trees/ allow passage of agricultural vehicles
Thinning (uprooting) trees	√ To prevent maladies × To prevent crowding	√ To prevent maladies × To prevent crowding	√ To prevent maladies × To prevent crowding
Spraying weeds	√	√	√
Mowing the lawn mechanically to protect trees	√ Above ground	√ Above ground	√ Above ground
Weeding manually for aesthetic purposes (only when impossible to do so mechanically or by spraying)	√	√	√
Clipping rootsuckers to protect the tree	√	√	√
Spraying and using pesticides	√	√	√
Pruning grapevines	×	➡ Permitted by a non-Jew	➡ Permitted according to rabbinical court guidelines
Pruning	× To encourage growth √ Not to encourage growth – with a shinuy (unusual manner)	➡ Permitted by a non-Jew	√ If without pruning there will not be a yield or when there is a concern that the tree will collapse
Pruning/clipping not to encourage growth (sanitary purposes, malady prevention, to allow the passage of vehicles)	√	√	√
Pinching back foliage in grapevines (pruning) to allow in sprays and air	×	√	√
Shaping young trees (clipping ends, tying)	× Unless irreversible damage will occur to the tree if not done	√
Treatments to increase the quantity of the yield	×	√	√
Fruit thinning	×	√	√ Before chanatah (beginning of the fruit's development) or after a third of the fruit's growth
*Removing orlah* fruit**	× Instead, remove buds	× Instead, remove buds
Harvesting	√ In small quantities	√	√
Sanitation Removing mummies (small, undeveloped fruit) left on trees and putting them on the ground to reduce pests	√	√	√
Fixing trellises, netting, stakes, etc.	√ Only when there is damage to the tree/vine and repair cannot wait until the eighth year	√ Only when there is damage to the tree and repair cannot wait until the eighth year	√ Only when there is damage to the tree and repair cannot wait until the eighth year