"Old and Valuable" Whomping Willow - Info

[Bex]

No: HPFGUIDX 109775

Brenda pondered:
> I wonder why it was willow though, out of all different kinds of 
> trees there are...

Yb's answer:
Well not only do Willows grow at a rather alarming rate for the tree 
world, but they also have long thin branches that can be whipped 
around, inflicting great pain within a pretty fair radius. The idea 
was to protect the hole in the ground (at the base of the tree), so 
another type of tree, say an elm or oak, wouldn't have been able to 
guard it as well, since the branches of those trees are rarely close 
to the ground. Plus, the name has a nice ring to it: Whomping Willow. 
Maybe a Mauling Maple, or an Enraged Elm, or an Aggressive Ash (boy 
wouldn't that hurt!), or perhaps an Overly-Aggressive Oak, anyone?

~Yb