Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): A mi suegra le gusta cuidar el huerto hasta que los tomates maduran. - My mother-in-law likes to tend the vegetable garden until the tomatoes ripen.

With gustar, the person who likes something is an indirect object, introduced by a. The pattern is: A + person + indirect object pronoun + gusta + thing liked. So A mi suegra le gusta… means “To my mother-in-law, it is pleasing…”. That initial a is not a personal-a for a direct object here; it marks the indirect object.

Why is it mi (no accent) in A mi suegra, not mí?

Mi (no accent) is the possessive adjective “my” in mi suegra (“my mother-in-law”). Mí (with accent) is the prepositional pronoun “me,” as in A mí me gusta. Here we want “my,” so no accent: mi.

Why is the pronoun le used (and not la) in le gusta?

Because gustar takes an indirect object for the experiencer: me, te, le, nos, les. Le = “to her/him/you (usted).” La is a direct-object pronoun and doesn’t work with gustar. So: A mi suegra le gusta… is correct.

Do I need both A mi suegra and le? Isn’t that redundant?

Yes, you need both with gustar. The clitic le is obligatory. The a-phrase (A mi suegra) clarifies who le refers to. You can say just Le gusta… if the context already makes the person clear, but you cannot say A mi suegra gusta… (missing le).

Why is it gusta and not gustan here?

Agreement is with the thing liked. Here, what she likes is the action cuidar el huerto (an infinitive phrase, grammatically singular), so gusta. Compare:

Le gusta cuidar el huerto. (liking an activity → singular)
Le gustan los tomates. (liking plural tomatoes → plural)

What is the grammatical subject of gusta in this sentence?

The subject is the activity: cuidar el huerto. The person who likes it (mi suegra) is the indirect object (hence le). So the literal structure is “To my mother-in-law, caring for the garden is pleasing.”

Why is it le gusta cuidar (infinitive) and not something like le gusta de cuidar?

After gustar, you use a bare infinitive for activities: le gusta cuidar. No preposition is needed. Forms like gustar de + infinitive are old-fashioned or regional; in Latin America, the bare infinitive is standard.

Why cuidar el huerto and not cuidar al huerto or cuidar del huerto?

Cuidar + direct object is the normal way with things: cuidar el huerto.
Cuidar a is used with people or pets: cuidar a los niños.
Cuidar de can also mean “look after,” and cuidar del huerto is possible (more heard in Spain or formal style), but in Latin America cuidar el huerto is the most common.

What’s the difference between huerto, huerta, and jardín?

Huerto: a small plot for vegetables or fruit trees (kitchen garden).
Huerta: often a larger, more agricultural market garden or orchard area; in some Latin American regions people also say huerta for a home food garden.
Jardín: an ornamental garden (flowers/lawn), not primarily for food.

Should it be maduren (subjunctive) after hasta que? Why is it maduran?

After hasta que, mood depends on time/reference:

Habitual or past/completed actions → indicative: Siempre se queda hasta que los tomates maduran.
Future or pending actions, in commands/exhortations → subjunctive: Quédate hasta que los tomates maduren. Your sentence describes a habitual routine, so maduran (indicative) fits.

Could I say …hasta que estén maduros instead of …hasta que los tomates maduran?

Yes. Both are fine, with the same mood rule:

Habitual: …hasta que están maduros.
Future/pending: …hasta que estén maduros. Using estar + adjetivo emphasizes the resulting state “are ripe,” while maduran emphasizes the process “ripen.”

Is madurarse correct for fruit (e.g., los tomates se maduran)?

Standard usage for fruit is the intransitive madurar: los tomates maduran. You will hear madurarse in some regions, but maduran is the safest, most neutral choice.

Can I change the word order to …hasta que maduran los tomates?

Yes. Spanish allows subject–verb flexibility. Both …hasta que los tomates maduran and …hasta que maduran los tomates are natural. The second can sound a bit more narrative/focused on the verb.

Why el huerto and not su huerto (“her garden”)?

Spanish often uses the definite article where English uses a possessive when ownership is clear from context. Cuidar el huerto here naturally implies it’s hers. Cuidar su huerto is also correct; it just makes the possession explicit.

Why do we say los tomates with the article? Could we drop it?

You generally need the article with plural count nouns in this kind of clause. Hasta que los tomates maduran refers to the specific tomatoes in that garden (or tomatoes in general in a generic statement). Bare hasta que tomates maduran is ungrammatical.

Is it okay to say Le gustan cuidar el huerto?

No. After gustar, when the thing liked is an activity, use a singular infinitive phrase, so Le gusta cuidar el huerto. Use gustan only when the grammatical subject is a plural noun: Le gustan los tomates.

How would it change for plural “in-laws”: “my in-laws like …”?

Change the indirect object to plural: A mis suegros les gusta cuidar el huerto hasta que los tomates maduran. Note that gusta stays singular because the liked thing is still the activity.

Pronunciation tips for tough words like huerto and suegra?

Huerto: silent h; ue is a diphthong; roughly “WEHR-toh.”
Suegra: silent u? No—the ue is pronounced; roughly “SWEH-grah” (the g is hard).
Gusta: the g is hard and the u is sounded: “GOOS-tah.”
Word stress: suegra, gusta, huerto, maduran are all stressed on the penultimate syllable.

Could I rephrase with a different verb, like “enjoy” or “love”?

Yes:

“Enjoy”: Mi suegra disfruta cuidar el huerto or disfruta de cuidar (the plain infinitive is common; de is also heard).
“Love”: A mi suegra le encanta cuidar el huerto (same gustar-type structure, stronger feeling).

Is A mi suegra le gusta the only acceptable order, or can I say Le gusta a mi suegra?

Both are correct. A mi suegra le gusta… is the most common. Le gusta a mi suegra… is also fine and can place focus on the verb phrase first. In all cases, keep the clitic le.