On this daf, we find a discussion about whether it is permitted to lightly water a field or garden during Shmittah.
One family had a resplendent garden in a chareidi neighborhood in Yerushalayim. When one neighbor noticed the woman of the house watering her garden, he asked her if she had carefully clarified whether this was permitted during Shmittah.
“We asked Rav Yosef Efrati,” the woman replied. “He explained that it is permitted to water a garden when the top layer of soil is dry, even if the plants aren’t actually wilting. This is especially true regarding plants that are in pots that are not actually in the earth and have no contact with it.
“I have been remiss in dealing with the garden, only watering when absolutely necessary, as is obvious from the neglected state of its plants. Did you really think that we would forgo the precious mitzvah of refraining from forbidden melacha during Shmittah to tend our little garden?” (Mishpetei Eretz, Shevi’is, p. 96).
