Crossword Genius

Flower blooming, nothing less, up on border (5)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

tulip

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

'flower' is the definition.
(tulip is a type of flower)

'blooming nothing less up on border' is the wordplay.
'blooming' becomes 'out' (plants which have bloomed are 'out').
'nothing' becomes 'O' (looks like zero - 0).
'less' suggests deleting specific letters (less can mean minus).
'up' shows that the letters should be reversed in order (in down clue: letters go upwards).
'on border' becomes 'lip' (I've seen this in another clue. I am not sure about the 'on' bit.).
'out' with 'o' removed is 'ut'.
'ut' reversed gives 'tu'.
'tu'+'lip'='TULIP'

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for tulip that I've seen before include "Flowering bulb (from Amsterdam?)" , "Plant at the centre of the Dutch financial bubble of 1637" , "Spring bulb" , "Bulb producing a single showy flower" , "Dutch bulb?" .)

I've seen this clue in The 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.