Like soldier from America clutching good spears (9)
I believe the answer is:
asparagus
'spears' is the definition.
(spears of asparagus)
'like soldier from america clutching good' is the wordplay.
'like' becomes 'as'.
'soldier' becomes 'para' (short for paratrouper).
'from america' becomes 'US' (United States).
'clutching' indicates putting letters inside.
'good' becomes 'g' (abbreviation).
'para'+'us'='paraus'
'paraus' going around 'g' is 'paragus'.
'as'+'paragus'='ASPARAGUS'
(Other definitions for asparagus that I've seen before include "Succulent edible shoots" , "Green shoots, cooked and eaten as a vegetable" , "Spear-carrier" , "Spears or shoots" , "Sugar asap for the vegetable" .)