Christmas tree pests and weeds The pathogen often makes Douglas fir trees unsalable as Christmas trees and affects the Christmas tree farming industry. Douglas firs are also affected by "Phaeocryptopus gaumanni" which causes Swiss needlecast. Red band needle blight is a fungal disease which affects coniferous trees, particularly pine, with a worldwide distribution. The disease is caused by the fungi "Dothistroma septosporum". Since the late 1990s its appearance in the United Kingdom has increased, among the most affected species is Corsican pine and the disease has been a significant problem in Thetford Forest. Though the disease spread rapidly during September 2007 Christmas tree growers remained
Fraser Tranter Fraser Tranter Fraser Tranter (born 1 December 1965) is a British strongman competitor, most notable for his appearance at the 1998 World's Strongest Man, as well as his podium finishes in the 1997 and 1998 UK Strongman Docklands Challenge, a national strength athletics competition which at the time held equivalent status to Britain's Strongest Man. Fraser Tranter was born in 1965 in Wolverhampton to Douglas Tranter and his wife Janet (née Simpson). He is the oldest of two siblings, having a younger sister Helen Louise born in 1967. As a strongman, Fraser began to come to national attention after winning