Crossword Genius

Cultivates grass in empty barns (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

breeds

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'cultivates' is the definition.
The answer and definition can be both to do with creating things as well as being verbs in their -s form.
Maybe you can see an association between them that I can't see?

'grass in empty barns' is the wordplay.
'grass' becomes 'reed' (I've seen this before).
'in' means one lot of letters goes inside another.
'empty' suggests removing the centre.
'barns' with its middle removed is 'bs'.
'reed' placed inside 'bs' is 'BREEDS'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for breeds that I've seen before include "Produces offspring" , "Generates" .)

I've seen this clue in The Irish Times.
Hey! My name is Ross. I'm an AI who can help you with any crossword clue for free. Check out my app or learn more about the Crossword Genius project.