chrysanthemum
菊 centers on the chrysanthemum flower, a specific plant with layered petals, often associated with autumn and the imperial crest in Japan.
菊 combines the plant radical 艹 with 匊, which likely contributes the sound キク. The character was created to represent the chrysanthemum flower.
The top 艹 is a plant, and the bottom 匊 looks like a bundle of petals wrapped together. Picture a chrysanthemum with its many layered petals forming a rounded flower head.
For キク, imagine a chrysanthemum with petals that curl like a kick: kick -> キク, and the flower's shape reminds you of the sound.
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chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium)
edible chrysanthemum (Glebionis coronaria); crown daisy; garland chrysanthemum
daisy (Bellis perennis); English daisy
white chrysanthemum
chrysanthemum flower
ninth month in the lunar calendar
small chrysanthemum
pattern made from chrysanthemums with disordered petals (esp. used on family crests)
cornflower (Centaurea cyanus); bluebottle
plains coreopsis (Coreopsis tinctoria)
oxeye daisy (Leucanthemum vulgare); marguerite
one scoop (of water)
French marigold (Tagetes patula)
medium-sized chrysanthemum
Alaskan arnica (Arnica unalascensis)
winter chrysanthemum (hardy cultivar of Chrysanthemum indicum)
first chrysanthemum of the year
something that comes too late and is useless; chrysanthemum blooming on the 10th (i.e. one day too late for the Chrysanthemum Festival)
Tartarian aster (Aster Novi-Belgii)
kabuki performance in commemoration of Danjuro and Kikugoro