Birchas hailanos – the beracha recited when fruit trees blossom in the spring—is a beracha that had once fallen by the wayside. It was lumped together with other occasional berachos, like those said on seeing the ocean or a monkey, and was similarly overlooked. These berachos were viewed as voluntary, and most people didn’t volunteer (see Rama §223:1 and Aruch Hashulchan §225:2). Nowadays, however, birkas hailanos has had a revival; it is back on the map and blooming once again.
Many people now make a point of saying this beracha every spring. Some turn it into an outing, and whole families trek to a neighborhood tree to recite the beracha. Lists of trees have been published and many kindly tree owners hang signs with the beracha from their trees.
Unfortunately, some people also hang signs on flowering non-fruit trees. According to the Mishna Berura (§226:2), the beracha can be recited only on fruit trees. It would be a wise idea for tree owners to identify the type of tree on the signs so visitors would know with certainty that it was a fruit tree. An additional benefit of naming the species on the sign would be to alert people when, and for how long, the tree will bud/blossom. Since every type of tree has a predictable span when it will blossom, putting the solar date (e.g. April 20-28 or “last week of April”) would tell passersby when to except the tree to bud/blossom so that they can schedule a return visit to recite the beracha.
According to the Gemara and Shulchan Aruch, the beracha can be said as soon as the fruit buds appear on the tree. It is not necessary for the blossom to open into a flower. The Gemara (Berachos 43:b) teaches: Rav Yehuda said: “One who goes [to the fields] during the days of Nisan and sees the buds emerging on the trees should recite the blessing ‘…He has not omitted anything from creation…’” When referring to the buds, the Gemara uses the Aramaic word m’lavlevi, from the root of lulav. From the Gemara in Yoma (81b) it is clear that only supple new growth can be called lavluv and as evidenced from the halachos of the arba minim it is specifically the unfurled new growth since the Torah calls the lulav kapos which bears a connotation of tightly closed. When the Gemara in Berachos chose the word lulav to describe the emerging fruit buds for the beracha it intended the unopened bud.
When discussing this beracha, the Mechaber and Mishna Berura use the Hebrew word perach instead of m’lavlevi. Modern Hebrew has infused the word perach with a sense of an open blossom or flower and this has confused some people. But, in its Biblical and original sense perach means a ‘bud’ and is the Hebrew equivalent of the Aramaic lulav. The Targum in Parshas Vayeishev (Bereishis 40:10) and Parshas Korach (Bamidbar 17:23) translates the Hebrew perach to mean lulav. The Mechaber and Mishna Berura did not indent to change the connotation of the halacha by switching the Gemara’s m’lavlevi to perach. They are simply using the Lashon Hakodesh term for the Aramaic lulav. (See Biur HaGra to Orach Chaim §226 and Halachos K’tanos 28.)
The time between when the buds first emerge from the tree and when they open as flower blossoms can be as much as a week. This extra week can make all the difference to those wishing to be mehader to recite the beracha during the month of Nisan (see below).
According to the Mechaber, the beracha can be recited from the time the buds appear until the fruit forms. The Mishna Berura (226:4) sides with the poskim who permit reciting the beracha until the fruit reaches maturity. It would seem that the ideal time to recite the beracha on the buds as soon as they emerge, when they are still closed, because that is how the Gemara and Shulchan Aruch frame the halacha, and like all mitzvos it is best to preform them at the first opportunity. The beracha can certainly be said until the fruits appear and, according to the Mishna Berura, until they reach maturity.
According to the literal reading of the Gemara and Shulchan Aruch, the beracha should be recited during the month of Nisan. The Birkei Yosef (§226) writes that based on Kabbalah, the beracha must be recited during Nisan. The Mishna Berura (§226:1,4), however, permits saying it past Nisan, as long as the fruit has not yet matured.
An unusual feature of this beracha is that it does not need to be said the first time a budding tree is spied (Mishna Berura §226:5). Other seasonal berachos of thanksgiving like shehechiyanu (Mishna Berura §225:13) can be said only on the first opportunity that the objects of the beracha are viewed within the given timeframe.
The beracha may be recited at any stage from the budding through fruit, as explained above. When recited on the blossom, any color petal will do. A card was once distributed advising “that the blossom must be open with some white petals showing.” People may have found the mention of white petals in these instructions confusing. Many fruit trees (e.g. cherry, peach, quince) have colored petals and only a few have white petals (e.g. apple, apricot).
More disturbing is the instruction to make the beracha on “an open blossom.” As explained above, there is no such requirement. Perhaps the writer’s intention was for the sake of those unfamiliar with plants to aid them in differentiating between fruit blossoms which have petals in a flower formation and leaf buds which do not have petals at all. Likewise, his point in mentioning white petals may have been to exclude green, the most common leaf color. According to the Mishna Berura (§226:2, cited above) the beracha may only be said on a fruit tree. Many city dwellers are unfamiliar with fruit producing plants and may not be able to tell the difference between a closed fruit blossom and a leaf bud.
While well-meaning, the card-writer’s contention is wrong. Most fruit trees produce their fruit blossom well before they grow leaves. Perhaps it would be wise to write something like, “When unsure if it is a fruit blossom or leaf bud, check for an open blossom with light colored petals.” As long as you are certain that it is a fruit tree, any color blossom will do.
In this season of renewal, may we all be zoche to recite the beracha on the revitalized trees properly.
About the Author: Avrohom Reit lives in Brooklyn and is the author of the Tekufas Hashana series – halachic works aimed at elucidating everyday mitzvos. Books in the series include: Teka Beshofar – Mastering Shofar Blowing (Feldheim), Zeh Kaporosi – The Custom of Kaparos (Mosaica Press), Lekicha Tama – A Lulav and Esrog Buying Guide (Feldheim) and Chalutz Hana’al – A Concise Overview of the Mitzvah of Chalitza (author).
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
One Response
With the understanding that this is not the best fourm for a halachik debate and will tremendous respect to Rabbi Reit.
In short it is my opinion, as well as others that the bracha should only be said on open flowers, not buds.
As someone who has spent a great deal of time learning the halachos of Birkas Hailanos I grappled with the meaning of the Melalevi mentioned in the gemora. This term can be seen in Unkelus (Korach 17:23) on the passuk Perach Mateh Aharon. The Sifsei Chachomim (ibid) clearly writes that perach is is the flower not the buds. See also Malbim Sefer Hakarmel erec Perach Tzitz. It seems clear that the shulchan Aruch chose his words carefully to clearly say that the bracha should be said on flowers. (I would agree that a bracha said on buds is not levatala but not lechatchila.) I would appreciate to hear from anyone who has a clear psak from gedolim on this matter.
Here in Chicago the trees first leaf out (though not fully) before the flowers open. Apricots are one of the few fruit that flower before leafing out.
In general a flower bud is larger and more sperical and more conspicuous than leaf buds.