What exactly is pe'ah, and what does the farmer's obligation involve?
Pe'ah refers specifically to leaving a standing portion at the corner (edge) of the field unharvested, as derived from Leviticus 23:22. Fallen stalks are leket, forgotten sheaves are shikcha, and underdeveloped clusters are olalot.
Question 2
How many distinct gifts for the poor does a vineyard produce according to Halachah 7?
Halachah 7 enumerates exactly four vineyard gifts: individual grapes that fall (peret), underdeveloped clusters (olalot), pe'ah (corner portion), and forgotten produce (shikcha). Leket applies only to grain, not vineyards.
Question 3
When the Torah says "Leave it for the poor and the stranger" regarding these agricultural gifts, who does "stranger" refer to?
The Rambam rules (Halachah 9) that "stranger" in this context means a ger — a convert to Judaism — derived by analogy to the Levite: just as the Levite is part of the covenant, so too the "stranger" receiving these gifts must be part of the covenant.
Question 4
According to Rabbinic law, what is the minimum amount of pe'ah one must leave from a crop?
By Scriptural law there is no minimum — even one stalk fulfills the obligation. Rabbinic law, however, sets the floor at one-sixtieth (Halachah 15), with the expectation that one will increase beyond this based on field size, number of poor, and the crop's blessing.
Question 5
Under what condition do presents left for the poor become permitted to everyone, including the field's owner?
Halachah 10 rules that since these gifts are not physically consecrated — the Torah says 'leave it,' not 'give it' — once the poor cease seeking them, they become permitted to anyone. The owner need not pay their value, because no formal consecration occurred.