Leaves when time gets cut back in shelter (7)
I believe the answer is:
lettuce
'leaves' is the definition.
(I know that lettuce is a type of leaf vegetable)
'time gets cut back in shelter' is the wordplay.
'time' becomes 't' (abbreviation).
'gets cut back' becomes 'tuc' (I can't justify this - if you can you should believe this answer much more).
'in' is an insertion indicator.
'shelter' becomes 'lee' (as in lee side, the side sheltered from wind).
't'+'tuc'='ttuc'
'ttuc' put inside 'lee' is 'LETTUCE'.
'when' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for lettuce that I've seen before include "Green-leaved plant good in salads" , "Leafy vegetable" , "Plant with broad crisp leaves used in salads" , "Salad leaves" , "Part of a BLT" .)