Why is selling a tree (al das not to uproot it) assur to sell to a Nochri? Your selling the tree and not the land benith the tree?
Also what would be the din of selling to a Nochri something that mechuber to the earth but not a tree. For example can you sell a stop sign or a merry go round that cemented in the ground (or partially burried under ground) to a Nochri in eretz ysroel (when you are not selling the land also)
A K, eretz yisrael
Shalom,
Thank you for your thoughtful question! The issue appears to stem from the fact that when one sells an item attached to the ground, even if the land itself is not formally sold, the object still occupies space in the land. Therefore, effectively, one is providing the Nochri the right to that portion of land, at least to the extent necessary for use of the item.
I believe we see this rationale in the first comment of the Bartenura in his explanation of the Mishnah, Avodah Zarah 1:8. Therefore, the same logic would apply to any item that is connected to the ground, even if it is not a tree. Selling such an item could effectively grant the buyer usage rights to the land beneath or around it, which is prohibited in Eretz Yisrael. Nevertheless, depending on the size of the attached item being sold, I believe one would have to address the issue of what the Shi'ur is for violating Lo Sichanem.
Warmly,
Yishai Rasowsky