[Avodah] What to do with Israeli esrogim after Succos

[Prof. L. Levine]

The following is from Rabbi Eli Shulman, the rabbi of the Young Israel of Midwood in Brooklyn.

Date: Thu, 13 Oct 2022 11:27:55 PDT

Dear friends,

If you bought an Israeli esrog this year, be aware that it has special halachos because of shemittah.

In particular, after Succos it cannot simply be disposed of. Rather it must be put away until after the time of ביעור, that is, that time when there are no longer esrogim growing on the trees in Israel, at which point the esrog - if it is still edible - must be taken out of your home and declared ownerless.

Since it is not at all clear when the time of ביעור is - especially since there's a tendency on the part of the farmers to remove the remaining esrogim from the trees soon after Succos in order to promote the healthy growth of new fruit - the following procedure is recommended:

Soon after Succos, bring your esrog to shul, put it down and  declare it hefker (ownerless) in front of three people. Declare further that even if you take it back home, you are not acquiring it and it remains hefker and available for anyone to take and keep.

You can then take it home - having in mind not to acquire it - and leave it out.

Eventually it will shrivel up of its own accord at which point it can be wrapped up and disposed of.


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