In horto fabae et brassica bene crescunt, sed rapa hoc anno parva sunt.

Because in takes different cases depending on the meaning:

• in + ablative = in/on a place, with no movement
• in + accusative = into/onto a place, with movement

Here, in horto means in the garden, describing location, so horto is ablative singular.

If the sentence meant into the garden, Latin would use in hortum.

Yes, fabae can have more than one form depending on context. It could be:

• nominative plural = beans
• genitive singular = of the bean
• dative singular = to/for the bean

Here it must be nominative plural because it is one of the subjects of crescunt (grow). So fabae et brassica means beans and cabbage.

Because the subject is actually two things joined by et:

• fabae = beans
• brassica = cabbage

Together they make a compound subject, so the verb is plural:

• fabae et brassica bene crescunt = beans and cabbage grow well

Even though brassica is singular by itself, the whole subject is plural.

Latin often uses a singular noun where English might use either a singular crop-name or a plural count noun. Brassica can mean cabbage as a plant or crop in a general sense.

So the Latin is not strange: it is more like saying beans and cabbage grow well rather than beans and cabbages grow well.

Bene is an adverb, meaning well. It modifies the verb crescunt:

• crescunt = they grow
• bene crescunt = they grow well

It does not agree with any noun, because adverbs do not agree like adjectives do.

Both are possible. Latin word order is much more flexible than English word order because the endings show the grammar.

So all of these are possible in Latin:

• fabae et brassica bene crescunt
• fabae et brassica crescunt bene
• bene fabae et brassica crescunt

They all mean roughly the same thing, though the emphasis may shift slightly. In this sentence, bene is placed before crescunt, which is perfectly natural.

That is a very common question. Rapa is a neuter plural form.

In Latin, many neuter plural nominative nouns end in -a. So:

• rapum = a turnip (singular, neuter)
• rapa = turnips (plural, neuter)

So even though rapa looks like a first-declension feminine singular form, here it is actually neuter plural.

Because rapa here is plural: turnips.

Since the subject is plural, the verb must also be plural:

• rapa sunt = the turnips are

If the noun were singular, Latin would use est instead.

Parva is the adjective small, and it agrees with rapa in:

• gender: neuter
• number: plural
• case: nominative

So:

• rapa = neuter plural nominative
• parva = neuter plural nominative

This is why Latin uses parva sunt = are small.

Because those would be the wrong gender.

For parvus, parva, parvum:

• parvi = masculine plural
• parvae = feminine plural
• parva = neuter plural

Since rapa is neuter plural, the adjective must also be neuter plural, so parva is correct.

Hoc anno is an ablative of time when, meaning this year.

Latin often expresses time when without a preposition:

• hoc anno = this year
• ea nocte = on that night
• tertia hora = at the third hour

So literally hoc anno means something like in this year, but idiomatic English is just this year.

Because anno is ablative singular masculine, and the demonstrative adjective must agree with it.

The forms of hic, haec, hoc change by case, number, and gender. Here:

• annus = masculine
• anno = ablative singular
• therefore the matching form is hoc

So hoc anno means in this year / this year.

Yes. Sed is a coordinating conjunction meaning but. It contrasts the two parts of the sentence:

• beans and cabbage grow well
• but turnips are small this year

So it marks a clear contrast between successful growth and disappointing growth.

It is a very common order, but Latin is not as rigid as English. A basic unmarked pattern is often something like:

• place/time first
• then subject
• then adverb or other modifiers
• then verb

So this sentence is quite natural:

• In horto = place
• fabae et brassica = subject
• bene = adverb
• crescunt = verb

But Latin could rearrange much of this for emphasis without changing the core meaning.

Classical Latin has no definite or indefinite article. So a noun like horto can mean:

• in the garden
• in a garden

The context tells you which is most natural in English. The same is true for fabae, brassica, and rapa. Latin simply does not have words exactly equivalent to English the and a/an.

Yes. Crescere can mean grow, increase, or develop, depending on context. In this sentence, because the subject is plants in a garden, grow is the natural meaning.

So bene crescunt means something like:

• grow well
• are growing well
• thrive

depending on how smooth you want the English to sound.