The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word GENTIAN
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
G
E
N
T
I
A
N
More clues leading to the result GENTIAN
- Extract mother from wild man-eating plant
- Plant provided by fellow Scotsman
- Fellow, very popular, holding a flower
- Gin neat when skipping tonic
- Fellow Scot’s bloomer
- For information, Italian turned over an alpine flower
- Information on container that protects a plant
- With 19 this is antiseptic manufactured by Scot after toff
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "tonic" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case tonic = gentian.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does GENTIAN mean?
GENTIAN noun- Any of various herbs of the family Gentianaceae found in temperate and mountainous regions with violet or blue flowers.
- The dried roots and rhizome of a European gentian (Gentiana lutea), used as a tonic.