Edelweiss, etc., a fellow longs for (7)

I believe the answer is:

alpines

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'edelweiss etc a' is the definition.
I know nothing about this answer so I can't judge whether it can be defined by this definition.

'fellow longs for' is the wordplay.
'fellow' becomes 'al' (I've seen this in other clues).
'longs for' becomes 'pines' (I've seen this in another clue).
'al'+'pines'='ALPINES'

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(Other definitions for alpines that I've seen before include "Plants in mountains" , "Natives of heights" , "Plants that grow in mountain areas" , "Some plants; spaniel (anag.)" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.

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