We visited the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens (CMBG), a world-class botanical garden in Boothbay Maine. Besides seeing a very impressive mix of flowers, trees, plants and shrubs that reminded us of the Butchart Gardens in Victoria, BC, Canada, we also got to meet five trolls, the Guardians of the Seeds.
The CMBG was an idea originally conceived by a small group of mid-coast residents in 1991. After 16 years of planning, the 148 acre public garden officially opened in 2007 and has now become an economic engine for the region and one of Maine’s top attractions. Part of the park’s mission is to attract people into the natural world where the hope is they will take on a better appreciation of nature and do a better job of taking care of it.
That’s where the trolls come in – Birk, Gro, Lilja, Roskva and Soren are trolls who have cared for the forest for centuries, “but now humans, the little people, are getting in the way”, according to Daniel Ungier, VP of Guest Experience & Education. The trolls are unable to keep up with the damage humans are doing, so they’ve come out of hiding to teach us about trees so we can become better stewards of the forest.
The trolls were created by world reknowned Danish artist, Thomas Danbo, a self labeled “recycle-art-activist”. Danbo has been creating art from repurposed materials since the age of 5, scrounging around his neighborhood for discarded items to create with. He has created trolls all over the world, including the USA, China, Australia, Belgium, Puerto Rico, Mexico, and South Korea. See more about their locations on www.TrollMap.com.
The CMBG’s tribe of 5 trolls was built mostly with the wood from reclaimed old wood pallets. Danbo built them with the help of hundreds of volunteers and the exhibit only recently opened in May of 2021. When their time is done, part of Danbo’s vision is that they will not have contributed to overconsumption. The organic materials with which they were manufactured will decompose naturally. Accordingly, if you would like to see this tribe of trolls for yourself, be aware that they are only expected to last about 5 years.
Our experience at the park consisted of 3 distinct highlights, the beautifully manicured gardens, the trolls, and a large natural area, untouched by development where we searched for the seeds hidden by the trolls. All told we spent about 3-1/2 hours exploring and enjoying this wonderful park.
Use these links to read more about the trolls, the park and the artist, but first, check out our gallery of 40 images of our visit by clicking the thumbnail images below.
