Crossword Genius

Flower with blue and white roots (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

nile

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

'flower' is the definition.
(Nile is an example)

'blue and white roots' is the wordplay.
I cannot really see how this works, but
'and' could be 'n' (common abbreviation for 'and') and 'n' is located in the answer.
The remaining letters 'ile' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'with' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for nile that I've seen before include "white flower?" , "Egyptian river" , "World's longest river" , "Line (anag)" , "River of Egypt" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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