Crossword Genius

Beyond delta, soil shortage (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

dearth

'shortage' is the definition.
(dearth can mean a shortage or lack)

'beyond delta soil' is the wordplay.
'beyond' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'delta' becomes 'd' (phonetic alphabet: alpha, bravo, charlie etc.).
'soil' becomes 'earth' (synonyms).
'd'+'earth' is 'DEARTH'.

(Other definitions for dearth that I've seen before include "Scarcity, paucity" , "Scarcity of thread" , "poverty" , "Scarcity - lack" , "want" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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