She provides fruit by the pound (5)
I believe the answer is:
pearl
'she' is the definition.
'fruit by the pound' is the wordplay.
'fruit' becomes 'pear' (pear is a kind of fruit).
'by' says to put letters next to each other.
'the pound' becomes 'L' (the pound sign is based on an L).
'pear'+'l'='PEARL'
'provides' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for pearl that I've seen before include "Lustrous structure in a mollusc shell" , "Drop" , "Off-white colour" , "prized example" , "White - jewel" .)