Learn Hardcore Spanish (Latin America): Mi vecina tiene un huerto pequeño en el patio con hierbas y vegetales. - My neighbor has a small garden in the yard with herbs and vegetables.

vecino = male neighbor; also the default form if you don’t know or don’t care about gender, or for a mixed group (los vecinos).
vecina = specifically a female neighbor.

So mi vecina tells you the neighbor is a woman.

2. Why is it mi vecina and not la vecina?

Both are possible, but they mean slightly different things:

Mi vecina = my neighbor (possessive, just like English “my”).
La vecina = the neighbor (a specific neighbor that both speakers can identify from context).

In this sentence, we’re talking about my neighbor’s garden, so mi vecina is natural.

Also, you can’t say la mi vecina in standard Spanish. You choose either:

mi vecina (my neighbor)
or
la vecina (the neighbor)

3. Why is it tiene and not hay?

tener (tiene) = “to have / to own”
haber (hay) = “there is / there are”

Mi vecina tiene un huerto…
= My neighbor has a garden… (she owns it)

If you used hay, it would be:

En el patio de mi vecina hay un huerto pequeño.
= There is a small garden in my neighbor’s yard.

So tiene focuses on possession, while hay focuses on existence.

4. Why is it un huerto instead of el huerto or just huerto?

un huerto = a garden (introducing it; not previously known in the conversation)
el huerto = the garden (a specific one that’s already known or unique in context)

Spanish usually needs an article with singular countable nouns. You normally can’t say:

✗ Mi vecina tiene huerto pequeño

You need:

Mi vecina tiene un huerto pequeño.

You’d use el huerto later, once it’s already identified, e.g.:

El huerto de mi vecina es muy bonito.
(My neighbor’s garden is very pretty.)

5. What is a huerto in Latin America, and how is it different from jardín or huerta?

In general:

huerto: a small plot where you grow edible plants (herbs, vegetables, sometimes fruit trees). Roughly “kitchen garden” / “vegetable garden.”
jardín: usually more decorative, with flowers, lawn, etc. More like “garden/yard” in the ornamental sense.
huerta: often a larger vegetable garden or a small farm/orchard area, depending on the country.

Use and nuance vary by country, but in most of Latin America:

huerto or huerta = where you grow food.
jardín = ornamental garden / yard.

6. Why is it un huerto pequeño and not un pequeño huerto? Can I put pequeño before the noun?

Both word orders are grammatically correct:

un huerto pequeño (noun + adjective)
= neutral, descriptive: a small garden (just stating size).
un pequeño huerto (adjective + noun)
= can sound more subjective or emphatic, sometimes more stylistic or emotional: a little garden (maybe with a bit of affection or emphasis on “small”).

In everyday speech, putting the adjective after the noun (huerto pequeño) is the most common, neutral option.

7. Why is it en el patio instead of en su patio?

Both are possible:

en el patio = in the yard (the yard we’re talking about in this context).
en su patio = in her yard (explicitly marking it as her patio).

Because the sentence already starts with Mi vecina, it’s clear the patio belongs to her, so el patio is naturally understood as her yard.

You could also say:

en el patio de mi vecina (in my neighbor’s yard), which removes any ambiguity.

8. What does patio usually mean in Latin America?

In much of Latin America, patio often means:

the backyard or open area behind/around the house,
sometimes paved, sometimes with dirt or grass,
not necessarily fancy or decorative.

It’s broader than just a small “courtyard.” In some places, jardín might suggest more plants/decoration, while patio can simply be the outdoor space, even if it’s mostly concrete.

9. Why is it con hierbas y vegetales? Could I say de hierbas y vegetales instead?

Both con and de are possible, but they have a slightly different focus:

con hierbas y vegetales
= with herbs and vegetables
Emphasizes that the garden contains those things.
de hierbas y vegetales
= (a) herb-and-vegetable garden
Describes the type or specialization of the garden.

In many everyday contexts they would be understood the same, but:

The original con hierbas y vegetales sounds very natural to describe what’s growing there.

10. What’s the difference between vegetales and verduras?

Usage varies by region, but broadly:

vegetales:
- Everyday in much of Latin America for “vegetables” in general.
- Literally means “things of plant origin” (can be broader in technical language).
verduras:
- Often used more for green / leafy vegetables, but in many places also means “vegetables” in general.
- In Spain, verduras is more common than vegetales for everyday speech.

In Latin America, vegetales in this sentence is perfectly natural; hierbas y verduras would also be understood and is common in some countries.

11. How do you pronounce huerto and hierbas? Is the h silent?

Yes, the h in Spanish is silent.

huerto
- Spelled h-u-e but pronounced like “werto” in English approximation.
- hue- → sounds like “we”.
hierbas
- hie- is pronounced like “yeh”.
- Roughly “YER-bas” (with a soft Spanish b between vowels).

So:

huerto ≈ WER-to
hierbas ≈ YER-bas

12. Why is it y vegetales and not e vegetales? When do we change y to e?

In Spanish, y changes to e only before words that sound like they start with the vowel /i/ (like English “ee”):

padre e hijo (father and son)
rico e inteligente (rich and intelligent)
agua e hielo (water and ice)

It does not change before other sounds.
Vegetales starts with a /b/ sound (ve-), not /i/, so we keep y:

hierbas y vegetales ✅
(not hierbas e vegetales)

So the rule is based on sound, not just spelling.