משנה: כָּל־מִין זְרָעִים אֵין זוֹרְעִין בַּעֲרוּגָה וְכָל־מִין יְרָקוֹת זוֹרְעִין בַּעֲרוּגָה. חַרְדָּל וַאֲפוּנִין הַשּׁוֹפִין מִין זֵרְעוֹנִין. אֲפוּנִין הַגַּמַּלּוֹנִין מִין יֶרֶק. גּוֹבֵל שֶׁהָיָה גָבוֹהַּ טֶפַח וְנִתְמָעֵט כָּשֵׁר. שֶׁהָיָה כָּשֵׁר מִתְּחִילָּתוֹ. הַתֶּלֶם וְאַמַּת הַמַּיִם שֶׁהֵן עֲמוּקִין טֶפַח זוֹרְעִין לְתוֹכָן שְׁלֹשָׁה זֵירְעוֹנִין אֶחָד מִיכָּן וְאֶחָד מִיכָּן וְאֶחָד בְּאֶמְצַע. MISHNAH: One does not sow any kind of seed-plants in a garden bed49“Seed-plants” are plants whose seeds are used as food, such as grains and legumes. {Sometimes, זרעים denotes only grains.) “Vegetables” are plants whose edible parts are leaves and/or roots (e. g. cabbage or turnips) or the fruit is distinct from the seeds (e. g. cucumbers or melons.) Since it is not customary to sow such little quantities of seeds, one may not sow grains and similar produce in garden beds that contain multiple kinds of plants since it would look like kilaim. What one does with a small plot planted only with one kind is not regulated here.; but one may sow any kind of vegetables in a garden bed. Mustard and smooth peas are counted as seed-plants, large peas are vegetables. A border wall that was one hand-breadth high and shrank is in order because it was in order at the start50The “start” is planting or sowing time when the full height is required.. In a furrow or a water canal one hand-breadth deep one may sow three kinds of seeds, one on each side and one in the middle.
הלכה: כָּל־מִין זְרָעִים וכו׳. חַרְדָּל וְהָאֲפוּנִין הַשּׁוֹפִין מִין זְרָעִים שֶׁזְּרָעָן לְיֶרֶק אֵין נוֹתְנִין אוֹתָן עַל גַּבֵּי עֲרוּגָה. הָאֲפוּנִין הַגַּמַּלּוֹנִין וּפוּל הַמִּצְרִי שֶׁזְּרָעָן לְזֶרַע אֵין נוֹתְנִין אוֹתָן עַל גַּבֵּי עֲרוּגָה. זְרָעָן לְיֶרֶק נוֹתְנִין אוֹתָן עַל גַּבֵּי עֲרוּגָה. וּשְׁאָר זֵירְעוֹנֵי גִינָּה שֶׁאֵין נֶאֱכָלִין. אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁזְּרָעָן לְזֶרַע נוֹתְנִין אוֹתוֹ עַל גַּבֵּי עֲרוּגָה. HALAKHAH: “Any kind of seeds, etc.” Mustard and smooth peas are counted as seed-plants; if one sowed them for use as vegetables he may not put them in a garden bed. Large peas and Egyptian beans sown to produce seeds one may not put in a garden bed. If one sowed them for use as vegetables he may put them in a garden bed. All other garden seeds that are not eaten, even though one sowed to produce seeds, he may put them in a garden bed51A similar text, likewise not free from corruption, is in Tosephta Kilaim2:8: “Mustard, beans, and oats, even if sown for use as vegetables, may be put in a garden bed. Large peas and Egyptian beans sown to produce seeds may be put in a garden bed; if one sowed them for use as vegetables he may not put them in a garden bed. All field or garden vegetables, even though one sowed to produce seeds, he may not put in one garden bed.” R. S. Lieberman prefers to read instead of שיפון “oats” שופין “smooth ones,” referring to beans, parallel to “peas” of the Mishnah. But the manuscripts of the Tosephta are too corrupt here to be of any value..
נִתְמָעֵט כָּשֵׁר. אָמַר רִבִּי אִימִּי הָדָא דְּאַתְּ אָמַר לִזְרָעִים שֶׁבּוֹ הָא לִזְרֹעַ בּוֹ בַּתְּחִילָּה אָסוּר. עָבַר וְזָרַע מֵאַחַר שֶׁאֵילּוּ מוּתָּרִין אַף אֵילּוּ מוּתָּרִין. רִבִּי יִרְמְיָה בָּעֵי נִיחָא נֶעֶקְרוּ הַשְּׁנִייִם הָרִאשׁוֹנִים מוּתָּרִין. נֶעֶקְרוּ הָרִאשׁוֹנִים הַשְּׁנִייִם מַה הֵן. נִישְׁמְעִינָהּ מִן הָדָא. הַמִּיטָּה שֶׁנִּיטְּלוּ שְׁתֵּי אֲרוּכוֹת שֶׁלָּהּ וְעָשָׂה לָהּ אֶת הַחֲדָשׁוֹת וְלא שִׁינָּה אֶת הַנְּקָבִים. נִשְׁתַּבְּרוּ חֲדָשׁוֹת טְמֵיאָה וִישָׁנוֹת טְהוֹרָה שֶׁהַכֹּל הוֹלֵךְ אַחַר הַיְּשָׁנוֹת. הָדָא אָֽמְרָה נֶעֶקְרוּ הַשְּׁנִייִם הָרִאשׁוֹנִים מוּתָּרִין. נֶעֶקְרוּ הָרִאשׁוֹנִים הַשְּׁנִייִם אֲסוּרִין. “If it shrank it is in order.” Rebbi Immi said, that means for the seeds that were already on it; hence, it is forbidden to sow anew. If one transgressed and sowed, since the earlier ones are permitted, so are the new ones. Rebbi Jeremiah asked: It is acceptable that if the later ones were uprooted, the earlier ones are permitted. If the earlier ones were uprooted, what is the status of the later ones? Let us hear from the following52Mishnah Kelim 19:6. One has to read ארוכות instead of ארובות. One speaks of a bed that has a wooden frame, consisting of two short (head- and foot-) boards and two long ones on the sides. The mattress lies on strings that are strung from one long board to the opposite one. The bed has become impure. It is a utensil, and any utensil can become pure either by immersion in a ritual bath (which is a problem for a large bed) or by becoming unusable. The Mishnah states that if the two long boards are broken we no longer have a bed and the remainder becomes pure, even if the boards are later replaced by new ones. But if the long boards are simply removed and replaced by new ones, the impurity is not removed, even if the replacement boards break, since the old ones could be returned to their place.: “If the two long boards of a bed were removed and one made two new ones in their stead but did not change the holes, if the new boards were broken, it is impure, if the old ones, it is pure, since all goes after the prior status.” That means, if the later ones were uprooted, the earlier ones are permitted. If the earlier ones were uprooted, the later ones are forbidden.
רִבִּי יוֹנָה אָמַר רִבִּי זְעִירָא וְרִבִּי אִימִּי תְּרַוֵּיהוֹן בְּשֵׁם רִבִּי יוֹחָנָן חַד אָמַר סוֹמְכִין לְגְדֶר וְאֵין סוֹמְכִין לְגוֹבֵל. וְחָרָנָה אָמַר גּוֹבֵל שֶׁנִּתְמָעֵט כָּשֵׁר. הָא גֶדֶר שֶׁנִּתְמָעֵט פָּסוּל. וְלֹא יָֽדְעִין מָאן אָמַר דָּא וּמָאן אָמַר דָּא. מִן דְּאָמַר רִבִּי יוֹסֵי רִבִּי זְעִירָא בְשֵׁם רִבִּי יוֹחָנָן סוֹמְכִין לְגֶדֶר וְאֵין סוֹמְכִין לְגוֹבֵל. הֲוֵי רִבִּי אִימִּי דּוּ אָמַר גּוֹבֵל שֶׁנִּתְמָעֵט כָּשֵׁר הָא גֶדֶר שֶׁנִּתְמָעֵט פָּסוּל. אָמַר רִבִּי יוֹסֵי אוּף אֲנָן תַּנִּינָן תַּרְתֵּיהוֹן גּוֹבֵל שֶׁנִּתְמָעֵט כָּשֵׁר. הָא גֶדֶר שֶׁנִּתְמָעֵט פָּסוּל. סוֹמְכִין לְגֶדֶר. דְּתַנִּינָן הַסּוֹמֵךְ לְבוּר וּלְנִיר וּלְגָפָא וּלְדֶרֶךְ וּלְגֶדֶר שֶׁהוּא גָבוֹהַּ עֲשָׂרָה טְפָחִים. אֵין סוֹמְכִין לְגוֹבֵל. דְּתַנִּינָן הַתֶּלֶם וְאַמַּת הַמַּיִם שֶׁהֵן עֲמוּקִין טֶפַח זוֹרְעִין לְתוֹכָן שְׁלֹשָׁה מִינֵי זֵירְעוֹנִין אֶחָד מִיכָּן וְאֶחָד מִיכָּן וְאֶחָד בְּאֶמְצַע. אִם אוֹמֵר אַתְּ שֶׁסּוֹמְכִין לְגוֹבֵל. יִזְרַע לְמַטָּן כַּמָּה שׁוּרוֹת. אָֽמְרִין חֲבֵרַיָּא קוֹמֵי רִבִּי שְׁמוּאֵל בַּר אָבִין תִּיפְתָּר שֶׁהָיָה זוֹרֵעַ בְּרֹאשׁ הַגּוֹבֵל. אָמַר לוֹ אִין כֵּינִי יַעֲקוֹר אוֹתוֹ הַקֶּלַח וְיִזְרַע לְמַטָּן כַּמָּה שׁוּרוֹת. לֹא מוּטָּב לַעֲקוֹר קֶלַח אֶחָד וְלִזְרֹעַ לְמַטָּן כַּמָּה שׁוּרוֹת. Rebbi Jonah said, Rebbi Zeïra and Rebbi Immi, both in the name of Rebbi Joḥanan, one said one plants near a fence but not near a border wall54However, everybody agrees that one may sow דאש תור under all circumstances. This shows that the explanation of Maimonides in Mishnah 3:1, using a diamond-shaped field in the center עדוגה, is consistent with the Halakhah here, while R. Obadiah of Bertinoro’s explanation of the position of R. Jehudah is not.
The statement means that one may sow close to the fence on both sides of the fence, even if the thickness of the fence is less than 1.5 hand-breadths, but sowing near a border wall that is 1 hand-breadth high requires one to leave half a hand-breadth empty in the עדוגה or on top of the wall adjacent to the ערוגה, for a total separation of 1.5 hand-breadths., and the other said, a border wall which lost height is in order, hence a fence which lost height is invalid. But we do not know who said what. Since Rebbi Yose said, Rebbi Zeïra in the name of Rebbi Joḥanan: One plants near a fence but not near a border wall, this means Rebbi Immi is the one who said that a border wall that lost height is in order, hence a fence which lost height is invalid. Rebbi Yose said, we also did make both statements, that a border wall that lost height is in order, hence a fence that lost height55To less than 10 hand-breadths, unless the fence itself was 1.5 hand-breadths wide. is invalid. One plants near a fence, as we have stated (Mishnah 2:8): “One does sow close to a fallow field, a plowed field, a stone wall, a foot path, a fence ten hand-breadths high.” One does not plant near a border wall, as we have stated (Mishnah 3:2): “In a furrow or a water canal that are one hand-breadth deep one may sow three kinds of seeds, one on each side and one in the middle.” If you say that one may sow close to a border wall, he should sow several rows down in the ditch. The colleagues said before Rebbi Samuel bar Abin: Explain it if the top of the border wall was sown56One may not sow parallel to it in the ditch unless the total distance was 1.5 hand-breadths. But a single seed acts as דאש תור and is permitted.. He said to them, if it is so, let him uproot that stem and sow several rows down in the ditch. Is it not better to uproot one stem and sow several rows down in the ditch?