Ми прополюємо клумбу, а граблі лежать поруч.

Because клумбу is the direct object of прополюємо.

The basic dictionary form is клумба. But feminine nouns ending in -а usually change to -у / -ю in the singular accusative, which is the case used for a direct object:

• клумба → клумбу
• книга → книгу
• машина → машину

So Ми прополюємо клумбу means We are weeding the flowerbed, with клумбу in the accusative.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Ukrainian does not have a separate present continuous form like English are weeding. The present tense of an imperfective verb can cover both:

• we weed
• we are weeding

Here, because the sentence describes a scene in progress, English would most naturally use we are weeding.

Also, прополюємо is:

• present tense
• 1st person plural
• from the imperfective verb прополювати

So the ending -ємо tells you it means we.

It comes from the verb прополювати, which is imperfective.

That matters because imperfective verbs are used for:

• ongoing actions
• repeated actions
• general processes

So прополюємо fits a meaning like we are weeding or we weed.

The perfective partner is commonly прополоти, which refers to completing the action. A perfective verb normally does not have a true present-tense meaning in Ukrainian; its present forms usually refer to the future.

So very roughly:

• прополювати = to be weeding / to weed
• прополоти = to weed completely / finish weeding

Yes. Ukrainian often drops subject pronouns when the verb ending already makes the subject clear.

So both of these are natural:

• Ми прополюємо клумбу.
• Прополюємо клумбу.

The form прополюємо already means we because of -ємо.

Including ми can add:

• emphasis
• contrast
• clarity

In this sentence, ми sounds perfectly natural, especially if the speaker wants to stress we as the people doing the action.

Here а is close to and, but it often has a slight sense of contrast, switching attention, or setting one thing against another.

So а can feel like:

• and
• while
• whereas
• as for

In this sentence, а links two ideas:

• we are weeding the flowerbed
• the rake is lying nearby

It is not a strong contradiction, but it does shift the focus from one situation to another. English might translate it simply as and, but the Ukrainian а often has a more noticeable contrastive flavor than і / й.

І / й usually just adds one thing to another in a straightforward way: and.

А often introduces a new point, a comparison, or a mild contrast.

Compare the feeling:

• Ми прополюємо клумбу і граблі лежать поруч.
  Grammatically possible in some contexts, but less natural for this kind of contrastive scene.

• Ми прополюємо клумбу, а граблі лежать поруч.
  More natural if you are saying: we are doing this, and meanwhile the rake is over there.

So а is a very common choice when English would still use and, but the speaker is slightly shifting or contrasting the two clauses.

Because а is joining two separate clauses, each with its own predicate:

• Ми прополюємо клумбу
• граблі лежать поруч

In Ukrainian, when conjunctions like а, але, and often і connect full clauses, a comma is normally used.

So the comma here is standard punctuation, not optional decoration.

Not necessarily. Граблі is one of those Ukrainian nouns that is grammatically plural even when it refers to a single tool.

This is called a plural-only noun. English has a similar idea with words like:

• scissors
• pants
• glasses

So in Ukrainian:

• граблі = a rake / rakes, depending on context
• the verb must also be plural: граблі лежать, not граблі лежить

In this sentence, граблі most likely refers to one rake as a tool, but grammatically it still behaves as plural.

Because Ukrainian often pays attention to the physical position of an object more explicitly than English does.

Лежати means to lie or to be lying, usually for something resting horizontally or simply placed somewhere.

So граблі лежать поруч means the rake is lying there nearby, not standing upright.

Ukrainian commonly distinguishes between:

• лежати = lie
• стояти = stand
• сидіти = sit

English often uses be in places where Ukrainian prefers a position verb.

Поруч means nearby, next to, or close by.

In this sentence, it stands alone as an adverb:

• граблі лежать поруч = the rake is nearby

Since no noun follows it here, there is no case issue in the sentence itself.

If you want to say next to something, Ukrainian can use patterns like:

• поруч із будинком = next to the house
• поруч будинку = near the house

So here поруч is simply an adverb describing location.

Yes. Ukrainian word order is fairly flexible because case endings carry a lot of grammatical information.

The sentence as given is neutral and natural:

• Ми прополюємо клумбу, а граблі лежать поруч.

But you could change the order for emphasis. For example:

• Граблі лежать поруч, а ми прополюємо клумбу.

That version puts the rake first and makes it more prominent.

You can also move поруч for style or emphasis, though some orders sound more natural than others. In general, Ukrainian word order is not random, but it is much freer than English word order.