Badly cared for tree (5)
I believe the answer is:
cedar
'tree' is the definition.
(cedar is a kind of tree)
'badly cared' is the wordplay.
'badly' indicates anagramming the letters (letters in the wrong order).
'cared' is an anagram of 'CEDAR'.
'for' is the link.
(Other definitions for cedar that I've seen before include "Raced around a mighty tree" , "Raced around a great hardwood tree" , "representative of Lebanon?" , "Tall coniferous tree" , "Leaving body" .)