Christmas tree pests and weeds Douglas fir, grand fir, white fir and California red fir on Christmas trees in Santa Clara County. Camellias imported from California to British Columbia in 2003 and early 2004 caused a significant SOD scare in the horticultural and Christmas tree industries. The detection of "P. ramorum" led to plant recalls in Canada, and a series of steps meant to quarantine the disease before it spread. The 2003–2004 SOD scare extended to Washington and Oregon nurseries and farms. Douglas-firs are vulnerable to the two plant pathogens that cause Rhabdocline needlecast, "Rhabdocline pseudotsugae", and "Rhabdocline weirii". "R. weirii" affects only Douglas-fir trees.
Douglas Fraser his father, who worked at a brewery, would sometimes fuel the family stove with stolen whiskey. Samuel Fraser moved to Detroit, Michigan, while his son was still a young boy, in 1922. Samuel, his mother, Douglas, his sister, and his brother sailed to New York City aboard the and were inspected at Ellis Island on April 23, 1923. They travelled to their new home in Detroit by train. Douglas was deeply influenced by the Great Depression. His father was out of work for long periods, and he admitted that the poverty and social disorder that he witnessed changed his life.