Commentary for Kilayim 3:1

עֲרוּגָה שֶׁהִיא שִׁשָּׁה טְפָחִים עַל שִׁשָּׁה טְפָחִים, זוֹרְעִים בְּתוֹכָהּ חֲמִשָּׁה זֵרְעוֹנִים, אַרְבָּעָה בְּאַרְבַּע רוּחוֹת הָעֲרוּגָה, וְאֶחָד בָּאֶמְצַע. הָיָה לָהּ גְּבוּל גָּבוֹהַּ טֶפַח, זוֹרְעִין בְּתוֹכָהּ שְׁלֹשָׁה עָשָׂר, שְׁלֹשָׁה עַל כָּל גְּבוּל וּגְבוּל, וְאֶחָד בָּאֶמְצַע. לֹא יִטַּע רֹאשׁ הַלֶּפֶת בְּתוֹךְ הַגְּבוּל, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהוּא מְמַלְאֵהוּ. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אוֹמֵר, שִׁשָּׁה בָּאֶמְצַע:

A garden bed that is six handbreadths by six handbreadths, one may sow five different kinds of seed within it, namely, four [species] one on [each of] the four sides of the bed, and one in the center [leaving the corners, one handbreadth by one handbreadth empty]. If it [the bed] has a border [on all four sides] one handbreadth high [and one handbreadth wide, thus the bed measures 8 x 8] thirteen different species may be sown in it; three on each border and one in the middle. One may not plant turnip heads in the border as they will fill it up [and it appears all intermingle]. Rabbi Yehudah says, six different species [may be sown] in the middle [for a total eighteen species].

English Explanation of Mishnah Kilayim

Introduction In previous mishnayot we learned that vegetables must be separated by a space of six handbreadths to prevent a problem of kilayim. In today’s mishnah we learn that this is only so in a case of a field of vegetables. When it comes to smaller furrows, the rabbis were more lenient and allowed one to distance them by a measure of only 1 ½ handbreadths, the amount of land the rabbis thought that each vegetable used to derive nutrients. To understand this mishnah we must also recall that if the point of one area planted with one species ends at the beginning of another species, this is permitted. I have tried to make a drawing below to illustrate this.

In this drawing the triangle can be of one species and the rectangle of another.

English Explanation of Mishnah Kilayim

A furrow of vegetables measuring six handbreadths by six handbreadths: it is permitted to sow in it five [different] types of seeds--four [species], one on [each of] the four sides of the bed, and one in the middle. I have drawn an approximation of what this furrow will look like below:

I don’t know how to draw half-filled boxes, so pretend that all boxes marked with “a” are filled with a triangle, such that only a point of this triangle is in contact with the planted area on the outside. In this way one can plant four different species on the outside and still maximize his planting on the inside.

English Explanation of Mishnah Kilayim

If it had a border one handbreadth high, one may sow in it thirteen [different species] three on every border, and one in the middle. If there is a border that is one handbreadth high, and one handbreadth wide, it turns out that the square is eight handbreadths by eight handbreadths. He can now sow thirteen different seeds, as you can see in the following drawing:

Again, imagine that the “a” boxes are filled to make triangles, coming to a point at their contact with the rows on the outside. In this way, he can sow thirteen different seeds, twelve on the outside rows, and a large patch in the middle. Rabbi Judah below disagrees with this and holds that one can plant six in the middle. This could be accomplished by drawing six diamonds in the middle, so that only the angles of the triangles touch the edges of the outside squares, like this.

Each letter forms a diamond (sorry that I’m not cable of drawing this.) In this way the only the angles of the diamonds touch the squares.

English Explanation of Mishnah Kilayim