___ to (takes care of) (5)
I believe the answer is:
tends
'to takes care of' is the definition.
(tending is a kind of taking care of)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for tends that I've seen before include "nurses" , "Dents (anag.)" , "Shows an inclination" , "Inclines or looks after" , "Inclines to take care of?" .)