Japanese Judas-tree, cinnamon tree
桂 centers on aromatic trees: the Japanese Judas-tree (katsura) and the cinnamon tree, both valued for their fragrant wood or bark.
桂 combines 木 (tree) with 圭, which likely contributes the sound and may have originally depicted a type of fragrant tree or jade-like quality.
A tree 木 with the right side 圭 (which looks like stacked earth blocks) is a fragrant tree: imagine the sweet smell of cinnamon bark or katsura leaves rising from the stacked layers.
For ケイ, picture a fragrant cinnamon tree shaped like the letter K: K -> ケイ, and the tree's scent fills the air.
katsura (Cercidiphyllum japonicum); Japanese Judas tree
knight
bay laurel (Laurus nobilis); bay tree; sweet bay; laurel tree
cinnamon
agency for employing servants and arranging marriages (Edo period); mediator; go-between
laurel wreath
true cinnamon tree (Cinnamomum verum); Ceylon cinnamon tree
golden osmanthus (Osmanthus fragrans)
Cercidiphyllum magnificum (species of katsura)
promoted knight
bay laurel (Laurus nobilis); bay tree; sweet bay; laurel tree
Gekkeikan (sake manufacturer)
knight
crown of laurel
poet laureate
rotary cutting; thinly slicing into a long strip (e.g. daikon, carrot, wood for plywood, etc.)
Keien period (between the end of the Russo-Japanese War and the Taisho Political Crisis, approx. 1905-1912)
knight promotion
moon
katsura forest; beautiful forest