[HPforGrownups] Re: "Old and Valuable" Whomping Willow - But Why?

[Michal]

No: HPFGUIDX 109602

Shirley wrote:
>However, I can confidently add that the whomping willow is 11 years
>younger than Professor Lupin, as he states in PoA that the Whomping
>willow was planted the year he started at Hogwarts (and later goes on
>to say that it was planted *because* he started at Hogwarts).  So,
>it's probably in the neighborhood of 30 years old, give or take a
>year.

Michal:
Ah, but would a seedling be able to keep students out of the secret 
passage? Don't think so. It would have to be big to hide the opening to the 
secret passage. It's expensive but not impossible for mature trees to be 
(trans)planted. With magical help, it would probably be easier.  It seems 
most likely to me that a youngish-but-big willow was transplanted and 
magically/ordinarily nourished with the tree being at least as old as Lupin 
(and possibly much older).

For the WW to be Lupin's age -11, a seed or cutting would have to have been 
planted and magically encouraged to grow almost instantly (certainly less 
than a month unless DD was planning Lupin's attendance for a long time) to 
a size large enough to both protect and conceal the secret passageway. This 
seems less likely to me. Maybe Neville or Professor Sprout knows. Maybe 
some Time Turner magic was used, she cackles gleefully.