Crossword Genius

Climber, one going over sides of valley (3)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

ivy

'climber' is the definition.
(thesaurus)

'one going over sides of valley' is the wordplay.
'one' becomes 'i' (Roman numeral).
'going over' is a charade indicator (letters next to each other).
'sides of' suggests removing the centre (only the letters on the sides remain).
'valley' with its centre removed is 'vy'.
'i'+'vy'='IVY'

(Other definitions for ivy that I've seen before include "With holly, it's seasonally decorative" , "The ... League comprises USA's top universities" , "Hedera helix" , "Girl" , "Parasitical plant, companion to holly" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
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