1MISHNA: One who buys the produce of a dovecote from another, i.e., the doves that will hatch over the course of the year in a dovecote, must leave [ mafriaḥ ] the first pair of doves from the brood for the seller. If one buys the produce of a beehive, i.e., all the bees produced from a beehive over the course of the year, the buyer takes three swarms and then the seller renders the bees impotent, so that they will stop producing offspring and instead produce only honey. One who buys honeycombs must leave two combs. If one buys olive trees for felling, he must leave two shoots for the seller.
2GEMARA: The mishna teaches that one who buys the brood of a dovecote must leave the first pair of the brood for the seller. The Gemara asks: But isn’t it taught in a baraita that one must leave the first and the second pairs of a brood for the seller? Rav Kahana said: This is not difficult. This statement in the mishna is referring to the pair left for the first pair of the brood itself, i.e., an extra pair of doves must be left behind to ensure that the first brood will not fly away. That statement of the baraita is referring to a pair left for the mother of the pair discussed in the mishna. In other words, the baraita is saying that one must leave a pair of doves for the mother, and later a second pair from the brood of her children, which is the pair mentioned by the mishna.
3The Gemara asks: What is different about the mother that there is no concern that she will escape from the dovecote? If the reason is that she is attached to her daughter and the mate which one leaves for her, this should also be true with regard to the daughter, i.e., she too will become attached to her mother and the mate which one leaves for her. Why, then, is it necessary to leave behind a pair of the daughter’s own brood to ensure that the daughter will not leave? The Gemara answers: A mother is attached to her daughter, whereas a daughter is not attached to her mother. Therefore, in order for the daughter to remain in the dovecote it is necessary to leave the daughter’s brood with her.
4§ The mishna teaches that one who buys the produce of a beehive takes three swarms and then the seller renders the bees impotent [ mesares ]. The Gemara asks: By what means does he render them impotent? Rav Yehuda said that Shmuel said: He renders them impotent by feeding them mustard. They say in the West, Eretz Yisrael, in the name of Rabbi Yosei bar Ḥanina: It is not the mustard itself that renders them impotent. Rather, since their mouths sting from the bitterness of the mustard, they return and eat their own honey. Due to their excessive eating of honey, they cease to form new swarms and instead produce honey for the seller.
5Rabbi Yoḥanan says: This is not the meaning of mesares . Rather, the mishna should be understood as follows: One takes three swarms by skipping [ beseirus ] every other swarm, so that the buyer receives the first, third, and fifth swarms, while the others remain with the seller. It is taught in a baraita : The buyer takes the first three swarms one after the other, and from this point forward he takes one and leaves one.
6§ The mishna teaches that one who buys honeycombs must leave two combs and one who buys olive trees for felling must leave two shoots. Rav Kahana says: As long as honey remains in the beehive it never leaves its status as food, i.e., it is always considered fit for human consumption. The Gemara notes: Apparently, Rav Kahana holds that honey does not require that one have intention to eat it for it to be susceptible to ritual impurity.
7The Gemara raises an objection from a baraita : Honey in a beehive is not considered to have the status of either food or liquid with regard to ritual impurity. Abaye said: This halakha , that honey is considered neither food nor liquid, is necessary only with regard to those two combs mentioned in the mishna, which are designated for the sustenance of the bees and are not for human consumption. Rava said: The baraita is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Eliezer.