Christmas tree pests and weeds of different pests, most of which cause cosmetic damage to the trees, important in the Christmas tree industry. The balsam woolly adelgid ("Adelges picae") are small soft-bodied insects which attack the Fraser fir. The insects appear as white, woolly spots on the tree and are fatal to the fir if left untreated. The woolly adeligid was native to central Europe where it affected the silver fir; it was introduced to the United States, where it has no known native predators, before 1900. Balsam twig aphids ("Mindarus abietnus") are another type of tree pest which affects fir and spruce trees in
Douglas Fraser was involved in a number of successful collective bargaining agreements, early retirement program in 1964, and wage parity for both US and Canadian members in 1967. Reuther died in a plane crash during the 1970 contract talks, leading many to speculate that Fraser might be tapped to lead the union. However, after a deeply-divided vote of the UAW executive council voted 13-to-12 against him, Fraser withdrew his name, and Leonard Woodcock became union president. Fraser led a nine-day strike against Chrysler that began on September 14, 1973, the first against the automaker in decades. The collective bargaining agreement hammered out