Crossword Genius

Man taking a drink around institute where plants are kept (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

herbarium

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

'where plants are kept' is the definition.
The definition suggests a singular noun which matches the answer.

'man taking a drink around institute' is the wordplay.
I cannot really understand how this works, but
'man' could be 'herb' and 'herb' is found within the answer.
'a' is present in the answer.
'institute' could be 'i' (common abbreviation as in MIT) and 'i' is found in the answer.
'drink' could be 'rum' (rum is a kind of drink) and 'rum' is found within the remaining letters.
This accounts for all the letters.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for herbarium that I've seen before include "Where Rosemary, for one, is" , "Plant room" , "Flora preserved" .)

I've seen this clue in the Sydney Morning Herald.
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.