Study Bava Batra folio 37A with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
לאו מי אמר רבי ישמעאל: חד פירא הוי חזקה לכולהו פירי? הכא נמי – הני הוו חזקה להני, והני הוו חזקה להני.
The Talmud explains the inference from the statement of R' Yishmael and how it clarifies the opinion of the Rabbis: Didn’t R' Yishmael say that harvesting one type of fruit is sufficient to establish the presumption of ownership for all of the types of fruit, i.e., for the entire field? Here too, these trees are sufficient to establish the presumption of ownership for those trees, and those trees are sufficient to establish the presumption of ownership for these trees.
והני מילי היכא דלא אפיקו, אבל אפיקו ולא אכל – לא הויא חזקה. והוא דבאזי באזוזי.
The Talmud notes two restrictions to the aforementioned ruling: And this statement applies specifically where the other 20 trees did not produce fruit, but if the other trees produced fruit and he did not consume their fruit, then his conduct is not sufficient to establish the presumption of ownership with regard to the other trees. And this principle, that consuming the produce of some of the trees each year establishes the presumption of ownership for the entire field, applies only if it is the case that the trees are scattered [devazei bazuzei] throughout the field. Otherwise, he establishes the presumption of ownership only over the section where the trees are located.
זה החזיק באילנות, וזה החזיק בקרקע – אמר רב זביד: זה קנה אילנות, וזה קנה קרקע. מתקיף לה רב פפא: אם כן, אין לו לבעל אילנות בקרקע כלום; לימא ליה בעל קרקע לבעל אילנות: עקור אילנך, שקול וזיל! אלא אמר רב פפא: זה קנה אילנות וחצי קרקע, וזה קנה חצי קרקע.
§ In a case where there was a field with trees in it, and this person took possession of the trees and that person took possession of the land, Rav Zevid says: This one acquired the trees and that one acquired the land. Rav Pappa objects to this: If this is so, then the owner of the trees has no share in the land at all. Let the owner of the land say to the owner of the trees: Uproot your trees, take them, and go. Rather, Rav Pappa said: This one acquired the trees and half of the land, and that one acquired half of the land.