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Mezuza placement

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Rabbi David Sperling

Sivan 27, 5773
Question
Shalom again Rabbi Sperling! I have a question about mezuza placement. My bedroom has a door that leads out to a private fenced-in garden. The garden is about 4 meters by 3 meters and has a wooden trellis upon which grapevines sit which (during the spring/summer) provide great overhead coverage--making the garden feel like a room (although I can still see a lot of sky). I wondered, since it is an outdoor space, do I put the mezuza on the right side of the bedroom-to-garden door (on my right as I’m returning INTO the apartment) because it’s not really considered a "room" that one would dwell in? Or do I put it on the right side of the door frame as I’m exiting the apartment toward the garden because it’s a large somewhat covered space that someone could consider a decent sized sukkah-type room? Thank you!! SC
Answer
Shalom, A doorway between the house and the garden certainly needs a mezzuzah. There is a discussion about whether that is because the house needs a mezzuzah, or the garden. The difference will be whether the mezzuzah should be placed in the right hand side of the door when going out to the garden or when entering into the house. There are many sides to this argument - but in your case, where both the garden is closed and can only be entered into from the house, and it is a large space itself, and it is covered, you should place the mezzuzah on the right hand side of the door as you enter into the garden from the house. May the blessings of the mitzvah of mezzuzah bring a blessing to your house
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