shield, pole
桿 centers on a long, rigid object used for support or leverage: a pole or a shield. The shield sense likely comes from the idea of a sturdy barrier held by a pole.
桿 combines 木 (tree/wood) with 旱, which likely contributes the sound カン. The character originally referred to a wooden pole or shaft.
The left side 木 is wood, and the right side 旱 looks like a sun 日 over a dry shield 干. Picture a wooden pole used to hold up a shield against the sun.
For カン, imagine a can attached to the end of a long wooden pole: can -> カン, and the pole holds the can high.
bacillus
Gram-negative bacillus
lactobacillus
ejector tube; ejector housing (revolver)
control column; yoke; joystick
rod (cell)
rod cell; rod
rod-shaped; bacillary; bacilliform; baculiform
rod (cell)
band cell; stab cell
surveying pole
Klebsiella pneumoniae
gate arm