Ex parvis seminibus magni flores nascuntur, si terra et aqua bonae sunt.

Ex means out of or from, and it takes the ablative case in Latin.

So in ex parvis seminibus, the word seminibus is in the ablative because it follows ex.

• ex = from, out of
• seminibus = from seeds

Latin often uses ex + ablative where English uses from.

Seminibus is the ablative plural of semen, seminis (seed), which is a third-declension neuter noun.

Because ex requires the ablative, and because the meaning is plural (seeds), Latin uses:

• nominative singular: semen
• nominative plural: semina
• ablative plural: seminibus

So ex seminibus = from seeds.

The adjective parvis must agree with seminibus in case, number, and gender.

Since seminibus is:

• ablative
• plural
• neuter

the adjective must also be ablative plural. For parvus, -a, -um, the ablative plural form is parvis.

So:

• seminibus = seeds
• parvis seminibus = from small seeds

Even though one word is a noun and the other is an adjective, they have to match grammatically.

Because flores is the subject of nascuntur, not a direct object.

Here flores means flowers, and they are the ones doing the action of being born / growing / arising. That makes flores nominative plural.

So the adjective must also be nominative plural:

• magni flores = large/great flowers

If it were magnos flores, that would be accusative plural, which would normally be used for a direct object. But there is no direct object here.

Magni flores is a noun phrase made of:

• magni = nominative plural masculine of magnus
• flores = nominative plural masculine of flos, floris

They agree in:

• case: nominative
• number: plural
• gender: masculine

So literally it means big flowers or great flowers.

Because nascuntur comes from nascor, nasci, natus sum, which is a deponent verb.

A deponent verb:

• has passive forms
• but an active meaning

So nascuntur looks like a passive form, but it means:

• they are born
• they arise
• they grow

In this sentence, flores nascuntur means something like flowers grow or flowers come forth.

Nascuntur is third person plural present indicative.

Why?

• third person = they
• plural = because the subject is flores (flowers)
• present tense = are born / grow
• indicative mood = a straightforward statement

So magni flores nascuntur means large flowers grow or great flowers are born.

Because terra et aqua together form a compound subject:

• terra = earth/soil
• aqua = water

Even though each noun is singular by itself, together they mean soil and water, so the verb and predicate adjective become plural:

• bonae = good, feminine plural
• sunt = are, plural

So Latin is treating terra and water together as they.

Because bonae agrees with the compound subject terra et aqua.

Both nouns are:

• feminine
• singular individually

But together they make a plural feminine idea, so the predicate adjective is bonae.

Compare:

• terra bona est = the soil is good
• aqua bona est = the water is good
• terra et aqua bonae sunt = the soil and water are good

So bonae is the correct plural feminine form.

Because its subject is terra et aqua, which is a compound subject joined by et (and).

A compound subject normally takes a plural verb in Latin, just as in English:

• terra est = the soil is
• aqua est = the water is
• terra et aqua sunt = the soil and water are

So sunt is plural because there are two things in the subject.

Because this is a simple, real condition: if the soil and water are good, large flowers grow from small seeds.

Latin commonly uses:

• si
  • indicative for ordinary factual or general conditions.

Here both verbs are present indicative:

• nascuntur
• sunt

That gives a general truth kind of meaning: Large flowers grow from small seeds if the soil and water are good.

It is more flexible than English word order, but it is perfectly normal Latin.

Latin word order often helps with emphasis rather than basic grammar, because endings show the relationships between words.

This sentence begins with ex parvis seminibus, which puts attention on the contrast:

• from small seeds
• great flowers

That contrast is one of the most striking features of the sentence.

English depends more on position, but Latin can move things around more freely because the endings make the grammar clear.

Yes. Magnus can mean:

• large
• big
• great

Which English word sounds best depends on context.

With flowers, large or big is probably the most natural literal choice. But great is not impossible if the sentence is meant to sound more elevated or poetic.

So magni flores most likely means large flowers, though the broader sense of magnus is worth remembering.

It can mean either, depending on context.

In this sentence, since it is paired with aqua and connected to plants growing, soil or ground is probably the most natural meaning.

So:

• terra = earth / land / ground / soil
• here, probably soil

Latin words often have a wider range of meaning than a single English word.

The main clause is:

Ex parvis seminibus magni flores nascuntur.
= Large flowers grow from small seeds.

The subordinate conditional clause is:

si terra et aqua bonae sunt.
= if the soil and water are good.

So the structure is:

• main statement
• plus a condition introduced by si

This is a very common Latin sentence pattern.