Grass: 艹 (3)
艹 is the grass crown, called くさかんむり, and is the simplified form of 艸. It often appears in plant words: 茅 is a reed, 茎 a stem, and 藍 indigo; 慕 contains the same-looking top, but its meaning is not simply “grass.”
茅 has 8 strokes and 蘭 has 19. Write the two strokes of 艹 across the top before completing the lower part.