The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word EUPHORBIA
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
E
U
P
H
O
R
B
I
A
More clues leading to the result EUPHORBIA
- Transport going around British plant
- Transport carries Bishop's plant
- Feeling of great elation gripping British plant
- Plants fear of Brussels, say? That's about right
- Twenty-eight countries fear being invaded by river plant
- Plant fear of Europe to ensnare voter with “Vote to Leave”
- Plant first of bulbs in joy
- In irrational optimism, invest billion in plant
- Joy drinking essence of zebra plant
- Joy when bee’s invaded that plant
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Plant" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case plant = euphorbia.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 EUPHORBIA mean?
EUPHORBIA noun- Any plant of the genus Euphorbia, the spurges.