Learn Hardcore Portuguese (Portugal): No outono passado, plantámos alface na horta e ela cresceu depressa. - Last autumn, we planted lettuce in the garden and it grew quickly.

plantámos carries an acute accent on the “á” because it’s the 1st‐person plural form of the pretérito perfeito simples (simple past) in European Portuguese. The accent distinguishes plantámos (we planted, past) from plantamos (we plant, present).

What tense is plantámos and when do we use it?

plantámos is in the pretérito perfeito simples. You use it to describe a completed action at a specific point in the past—in this case, “last autumn.”

Why do we say no outono passado instead of passar no outono or passado no outono?

Portuguese places time adjectives after the noun, so it’s “outono passado” (literally, “autumn past,” i.e. “last autumn”).
no is the contraction of em + o (“in + the”), required before a masculine noun like outono.

Could we say “no outono anterior” instead of “passado”?

Yes, anterior also means “previous,” but passado is far more common in everyday speech when you mean “last.”

What’s the difference between horta and jardim?

horta: a plot for growing vegetables/herbs (kitchen garden).
jardim: a decorative garden with flowers, lawns, paths.

Why is the pronoun ela used here?

alface (lettuce) is a feminine noun in Portuguese, so we refer back to it with ela (she). This avoids repeating alface.

Why do we say cresceu depressa instead of quickly?

depressa is a common, colloquial adverb meaning “quickly.”
rapidamente is also correct but feels more formal. Both are adverbs of manner, placed after the verb.

Could the adverb come before the verb?

Yes, you could say “depressa cresceu” to add emphasis on speed, but the neutral word order is verb + adverb: “cresceu depressa.”