Amateur caught by a secret service plant (6)

I believe the answer is:

acacia

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'plant' is the definition.
The answer is an example.

'amateur caught by a secret service' is the wordplay.
'amateur' becomes 'a'.
'caught' becomes 'c' (cricket abbreviation).
'by' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'secret service' becomes 'cia' (I am not sure about this - if you are sure you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'a'+'c'+'a'+'cia'='ACACIA'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for acacia that I've seen before include "Flowering tree or shrub" , "Tree or shrub with yellow or white flowers" , "Plant like wattle" , "Thorny tree, wattle" , "Tropical shrub" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.

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