"Old and Valuable" Whomping Willow - But Why?

[Pat]

No: HPFGUIDX 109600

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Brenda M." 
<Agent_Maxine_is at h...> wrote:
> Hi all!
> 
<snipped>... when Snape is lecturing 
> them about damaging the Whomping Willow, he describes it as "old 
and 
> valuable".  Also Harry's description has it "ancient tree".
> 
> But why?
> 
> We know it was planted the year Lupin came to Hogwarts.  So that 
will 
> be about 24-25 years ago.  It must have come from somewhere else --
 I 
> suppose that's a common sense, tree of that magnitude will take 
quite 
> a long time to grow.  So how old of trees are thought to 
> be 'ancient'?  Any botanist?
> 
> And why valuable? > 
> Any thoughts?
> 
> Brenda

Pat here:

In the book, Harry never says ancient, and Snape never says old, 
just valuable.  Here's the quote, after Snape reads from the paper 
that they were seen by six or seven muggles:

"I noticed, in my search of the park, that considerable damage seems 
to have been done to a very valuable Whomping Willow."  (US 
paperback, Chap. 5, p. 79)

I don't know about this particular willow (which, in the movie, 
looks nothing like the willows I've seen--but they are referred to 
as weeping willows, so maybe this is a different type), but they do 
seem to be fast growing trees, if they have a good underground water 
source.  More than likely, the thing that makes it valuable is it's 
location and it's ability to attack.  But that's one of those things 
that has been implied and not really spelled out in detail.  
Besides, the fact that Harry damaged anything gave Snape the 
opportunity to yell at him and dream of his being expelled--so that 
would make it valuable in Snape's eyes--no?

Pat