薹 (tái): sedge (Carex)

Meanings

蒜薹是大蒜嫩的花茎，可以当蔬菜吃。

Suàntái shì dàsuàn nèn de huājīng, kěyǐ dāng shūcài chī.

Garlic shoots are the tender flowering stalks of garlic and can be eaten as a vegetable.

薹草生长在水田和沼泽里。

Táicǎo shēngzhǎng zài shuǐtián hé zhǎozé lǐ.

Sedge grows in paddy fields and marshland.

usage

薹 has two food and plant senses: 薹草 is sedge used to weave rain capes and hats, and 蒜薹 or 油菜薹 is the tender edible flower stalk of garlic or rape.

radical

艹 cǎo

grass; plant

艹 is the grass radical 草 in top form, marking this as a plant: a marsh sedge and the edible flowering stalk of garlic and rape.

phonetic

臺 tái

platform; terrace

臺 supplies the sound tái, matching its own reading exactly. It is the phonetic element here, the full traditional form of the platform character 台.

薹 tái