A mother's diatribe ending in hush ... and maybe tumbleweed! (8)
I believe the answer is:
amaranth
'maybe tumbleweed' is the definition.
I can't tell whether this definition defines the answer.
'a mother's diatribe ending in hush' is the wordplay.
'mother' becomes 'ma' (ma can mean mother).
'diatribe' becomes 'rant' (I've seen this in another clue).
'ending in' indicates one should take the final letters.
The final letter of 'hush' is 'h'.
'a'+'ma'+'rant'+'h'='AMARANTH'
'and' acts as a link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for amaranth that I've seen before include "Type of cereal" , "Never-fading flower; food colour dye" , "South American cereal; purple colour" , "Edible plant; purple" , "Fabled never-fading flower" .)