[Avodah] Shemitta

[Dov Bloom]

>I heard from a family friend who worked on a kibbutz dati during one
>shemitta that they did all melacha with a shinui - rather than lowering
>the plow and then starting to drive, they started to drive and then
>lowered the plow.  What situation would that have been?  Hetter mechira?

Some heter mechira proponents prefer not to do melachot d'oraita (plowing and planting) on a d'oraita level even though Shmitta is de'rabbanan now. So everything would come out only a derabbanan on a derabbanan. Religious kibbutzim used for the last number of Shmittot a grama attachment from Machon Tzomet for lowering the plow/planter so these melachot would be a) derabbanan because of grama b) shmitta is only derabbanan now and c) heter mechira.

40-50 years ago there were other suggestions to lower the level of these 2 melachot one notch. 

I am not aware that this was ever done for "all melacha", only for plowing and planting.

The original heter of R Yitzhok Elchonon Spector, along with R Mohliver and R"I miKutna in 1889 (Tarmat)I believe didn't include this priviso/recommendation