In the December 14th issue of the Seattle Times I read about Gary Chastagner, aka Mr. Christmas Tree.  He is a scientist and WSU professor who cured Douglas Firs of “Swiss Needle Cast” with a fungicide treatment in the 1980s.  His goal right now is breeding the needle-dropping trait out of Christmas trees.  It sounds like a fun kind of science, but I’m okay with sweeping up needles every day for a couple of weeks.  Why mess with perfection?