Crossword Genius

Maple syrup essentially put beneath one (4)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

acer

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

'maple' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'syrup essentially put beneath one' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite understand how this works, but
'one' could be 'ace' (ace has a value of one in some card games) and 'ace' is located in the answer.
A single letter 'r' remains which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for acer that I've seen before include "Plant" , "Care about this tree" , "Type of maple" , "Tree with winged fruit" , "Tree or shrub of the maple genus" .)

I've seen this clue in The Independent.
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