The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word TOMATILLO
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
T
O
M
A
T
I
L
L
O
More clues leading to the result TOMATILLO
- Mother with work that also bears fruit
- Evil lurks within tomato plant
- Fruit mother has to cultivate, also’s picked?
- Look after work containing tangle of Mexican fruit
- Tamil tool used to create fruit
- Harm contained within a pulpy fruit — a Mexican cuisine staple
- Small green vegetable found in automat, illogically
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "fruit" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case fruit = tomatillo.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 TOMATILLO mean?
TOMATILLO noun- A plant of the nightshade family originating in Mexico, Physalis philadelphica, cultivated for its tomato-like green to green-purple fruit surrounded by a thin papery skin.