THE LULAV ITSELF MAY BE A FRUIT
We have seen that although the lulav is called in the Torah a branch of a date tree, the consensus of the poskim is that one can use a lulav even from a tree that does not have any dates.
It is interesting to note that the Drisha in Hilchos Orlah and the Mei’ri (Magen Avos pg. 121) write that all four of the species are considered fruits. This can be gleaned from the words of the Targum as well, who writes that we take the following fruits: “lulav, esrog, hadasim, and aravos.”
This notion, however, seems to contradict the Gemara (Menachos 27a), which tells us that two of the four species are fruit-bearing: the esrog, which is itself a fruit, and the lulav, which has dates. The other two, the hadas and the aravah, do not bear fruits.
We can answer this question with the words of the Shibalei Haleket. The Shibalei Haleket discusses the brachah recited on berries that grow on the hadas. He writes that they are not considered bona fide fruits, and one should make only a Shehakol on these berries. This is also cited in the Shulchan Aruch (203:5). He proves this from the aforementioned words of the Gemara, that the hadas is considered a tree that does not give off fruits. We must conclude that, although there are berries that grow, they are not considered bona fide fruits.
The same can be applied to the opinion of the Mei’ri, that although all four species have some level of being called a fruit, they are still not considered bona fide fruits.
CANARY LULAVIM
We can end this discussion with mentioning the big question in regard to the Canary lulav that grows in the Canary Islands, which was the subject of a major debate among the poskim. One of the issues is that it does not give off any dates. There is a similar question in regard to a certain species of date trees that grows in Florida.
Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach zt”l rules that Canary lulavim are kosher. Since the Torah is referring to a tree that is from this species, and these lulavim are very similar in many ways, they should be considered part of the lulav species and should be acceptable. However, Rav Moshe Feinstein zt”l (Igros Moshe 4:21:7) disagrees and rules that these lulavim are not halachically acceptable. Since these lulavim’s kashrus is questionable, one will not even find them being sold.
KAPOS
There is another important halachah that we learn from the text of the pasuk. The lulav is called כַּפֹּ ת תְּ מָ רִ ים. The word כַּ פֹּ ת means tied together, meaning that it should be a branch with the leaves held together. In fact, the Rama (645:1) adds that it is preferable for the leaves of the lulav to be close together.
The Mishnah Berurah writes that there is a dispute among the Acharonim if the Rama is recommending that the leaves be totally together or if a lulav whose leaves are spread out a little is also fine. The Levush explains that they should be as close together as possible because the closer together they are, the bigger the fulfillment of “kapos,” having the leaves together, is.
In the sefer Toras Hadaled Minim, the author quotes Rav Elyashiv zt”l as saying that if there is a little space at the top, which often happens, especially after many days of shaking, that is fine. His son-in-law, Rav Azriel Auerbach shlit”a, adds that as long as when you put it down or when you shake it, the lulav looks like it is together, the lulav is also included in the preferable fulfillment of the mitzvah.
There is an interesting minhag that on Hoshana Rabbah, we take off the rings that keep the lulav leaves together. This minhag is mentioned by the Rishonim and quoted by the Tur and is also cited in the Shulchan Aruch. This is alluded to by the word כַּ פֹּ ת, which is spelled without a vuv, which has the numerical value of six. This teaches us that the lulav leaves only need to be together on the first six days.
IN SUMMARY
Using Canary lulavim is a machlokes. Although one can use a lulav even from a tree that does not have any dates, some poskim consider the Canary lulav a different species.
We learn from the word כַּ פֹּ ת that it is preferable for the leaves to be close together.
RABBI NACHUM SCHEINER
