No Deadheading
Gardening in Israel is different this year. This is the year of shmitta, the seventh year of a cycle, in which the land of Israel is supposed to lie fallow.
When I arrived at my cousin’s house in the Galil, I noticed that some of the plants were similar to those in my own garden: snapdragons, dianthus and white alyssum. The tops of the plants, however, were browned. In my own garden, I just reach down and pluck off the top browns of the plants. This is called deadheading, and it helps to rejuvenate the plant so new flowers will grow. In the shmitta year, however, religious Jews in Israel do not do deadheading. There are few tasks that they are allowed to perform in their gardens; mostly just watering the plants is allowed. They are not even allowed to apply mulch to the sides of the plants; this must be done in the year before shmitta.
I wondered aloud to my cousin if gardeners suddenly do a lot of gardening the week after Rosh Hashana, the Jewish New Year, when shmitta is over and the new year begins. She reminded me that only religious Jews in Israel keep shmitta, so many of the gardens are kept up, despite the laws. She then told me about a friend who lived in a mixed neighborhood in Jerusalem whose neighbors got irritated with him because he was not tending his garden. He then put up a sign saying: “Shmitta Observed Here”, so it would be obvious that his garden was not in that state due to lazy neglect.
Ilana-Davita says
That's interesting. I never thought of shmitta applying to individual gardens.
Jack says
“Shmitta Observed Here”
That is a cool "only in Israel" moment.
Leora says
I am still trying to figure out the shmitta rules. It seems like there are many ways to deal with shmitta, and differing opinions on how to deal with this special year. There's heter michira, otzar yisrael, and buying produce from non-Jews.
My cousins (and my friend in Ma'alot) have a special pail for putting in produce scraps during the shmitta year. We kept some fruit pits at the hotel in a separate container, and then the hotel maids threw them out! The truth is, we had no idea what to do with the produce scraps, anyway. I asked my cousin if he uses it for compost; he had no idea what compost is.
hihorosie says
Very interesting! Something new for me to learn about. What is the purpose of shmitta for the garden?
Leora says
Rosie, the ancient purpose of shmitta was probably to let the land rest. Might have been for agricultural reasons. Nowadays, or if you ask for a religious reason, it is to show that God is in charge, and He determines that the crops grow.
As this is a commandment that only applies in the Land of Israel, someone who grew up and/or studied in Israel would know the laws much better than I do. There are other agricultural laws as well, such as not using fruit from a young (younger than three years old) tree and leaving a portion of one's field for the poor.
hihorosie says
Interesting! Thanks for the tidbit.
phyllis says
this is such a great post. not being a big gardener-type, i never thought about this! thanks...
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