T.A. 3019 May(?) 25: King Elessar finds the sapling of the White Tree

When did Aragorn the King Elessar find the sapling of the White Tree?

“Sapling of the White Tree” by Crooty

After Gandalf took Aragorn to find the sapling of the White Tree, Aragorn has it planted it in the court by the fountain of the Citadel, in place of the withered White Tree.

…and swiftly and gladly it began to grow; and when the month of June entered in it was laden with blossom.

‘The sign has been given,’ said Aragorn, ‘and the day is not far off.’ And he set watchmen upon the walls.

J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King, “The Steward and the King“

According to the story, these events take place some time between May 8, when the Riders of Rohan departed Minas Tirith, and Arwen‘s arrival to the City “the day before Midsummer” in T.A. 3019 (between S.R. 1419 Thrimidge 8 and Mid-year’s Day). Midsummer (a.k.a. Mid-year’s Day) is the 2nd of 3 holidays in the Shire Calendar that fall between its months of June and July (between Forelithe and Afterlithe).

According to The Tale of Years (Appendix B), King Elessar finds the sapling on T.A. 3019 June 25 (S.R. 1419 Forelithe 25).

Hammond & Scull make the case in The Lord of the Rings: A Reader’s Companion that the “narrative cannot be reconciled with The Tale of Years” for the dating of this event, since the story implies that the Tree was already planted in May (Thrimidge) and flowers near the beginning of June (Forelithe), which “makes perfect sense” on its own:

In that sequence the gap of time between the ‘sign’ and Arwen’s arrival is four weeks, arguably ‘not far off’ to Aragorn, who has waited to marry Arwen for nearly forty years. But according to The Tale of Years, Aragorn did not find the Tree until 25 June, only six days before Arwen’s arrival. If that date is correct, then ‘when the month of June entered in’ must be an error, the Tree blossoms in an impossibly short period of time, and Arwen appears at Minas Tirith almost before Aragorn sets his watchers on the walls.

Wayne G. Hammond and Christina Scull, The Lord of the Rings: A Reader’s Companion

For this Lunar Read-along, I’m defying the date given in Appendix B, because I agree with the Reader’s Companion assessment that it seems like “an impossibly short period of time” for all of these events to occur in only 6 days. So assuming the The Tale of Years is in error, I’m going with S.R. 1419 Thrimidge 25 for the day the sapling is found, which also happens to be the last day of “May” in King Elessar’s New Reckoning (that is 30 Lótessë or Lothron), and within the last week of “Spring” in the Reckoning of Rivendell (that is 49 Tuilë/Ethuil). It also happens to fall between the events of Elrond and Arwen arriving to Lothlórien on May (Thrimidge) 20, and the escort of Arwen leaving Lothlórien on May (Thrimidge) 27.

Since there are 30 days from Thrimidge 25 to Forelithe 25, the moon would look almost exactly the same on both of these dates. So either way, there would have been a thin waxing crescent moon setting only a couple of hours after sunset on the 24th, probably before Gandalf took Aragorn out of the City by night, then rising on the 25th around mid-morning, probably already after Aragorn finds the sapling. If you’re curious to know what this moon would have looked like, even though it was not featured in the story, look for the same kind of moon trailing a couple of hours behind the sun today (2021 May 15)!

The waxing crescent moon rising at mid-morning, on T.A. 3019 May 25 (S.R. 1419 Thrimidge 25). Created in Stellarium using the moon of 1942 May 19, at about 44°N latitude, such as near Florence, Italy or Belgrade, Serbia.

The waxing crescent moon rising at mid-morning, on T.A. 3019 June 25 (S.R. 1419 Forelithe 25). Created in Stellarium using the moon of 1942 June 18, at about 44°N latitude, such as near Florence, Italy or Belgrade, Serbia.