Plant initially consumed colony of bees (5)
I believe the answer is:
chive
'plant' is the definition.
The answer is an example.
'initially consumed colony of bees' is the wordplay.
'initially' suggests taking the first letters.
'colony of bees' becomes 'hive' (I've seen this before).
The initial letter of 'consumed' is 'c'.
'c'+'hive'='CHIVE'
(Other definitions for chive that I've seen before include "12 down-like herb" , "Onion-like herb" , "Herb of onion family" , "Leaves" .)