BOOTHBAY, Maine — When Brent McHale was growing up in central New York, he liked to design the Christmas lights for his parents’ home.
"Yeah, it was fun, magical," McHale said. "People drive by the house and say, 'My gosh, look at that.' Now I get to do it on a huge scale, which is wonderful."
The huge scale he referred to is the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, where McHale, who graduated college less than five years ago, first came as a horticulture intern. He was eventually hired full-time to help nurture the gardens.
Part of the job duties for horticulture staff, however, includes working to set up hundreds of thousands of lights for the annual Gardens Aglow event. When the person leading the lighting project stepped down, McHale raised his hand and was put in charge of the event.
He loves it. And he especially loves this year’s display.
"I love it. I think it's very different very unique. We have the lighthouse in the back, that’s kind of our crown jewel this year.”
That lighthouse is nearly 12 feet tall, with a metal frame covered in 11,000 lights with alternating bands of red and white emulating the famous Maine lighthouse in Lubec. As impressive as Gardens Aglow is, McHale said they light far more than plants and trees. Besides the lighthouse, he said there are about 300 other man-made sculptures, including animal shapes and other objects that get wrapped with colored lights.
"About 66 miles of lights. That’s what we figured out. That takes the staff up to 11 weeks to make it happen."
His boss, Botanical Gardens CEO Gretchen Ostherr, praised McHale’s work, which will be seen by an estimated 120,000 visitors this season.
"Every year people say it’s the best ever, and I have to say this year it's exceptional in many ways. I love the ocean lighthouse scene on the great lawn and how it connects to this place. The fact that we are on the ocean—Coastal Maine Botanical Garden."
That "ocean" Ostherr mentioned is made of strings of blue lights, stretching some distance away from the lighthouse, with lights making peaks and troughs, similar to waves. Nearby is a stunning, undulating carpet of 25,000 blue, and purple lights woven through a net that is draped over plants, to further enhance the ocean effect.
After New Year's all the lights will be shut off, the 12,000 strings gradually taken down and stored. The sculptures will also be packed away to let the plants again take center stage.
And while Brent McHale has several areas of the garden to tend, lights are never far from his mind.
"I’m thinking about next year right now, how to reimagine and change it up, keep it fresh," McHale said.
That even applies to his newest creation, the lighthouse. It seems perfectly settled on a little rise beside the great lawn of the Gardens, but McHale said it won’t be back there next year.
"I have a couple of ideas for where it might go," he said with a smile.
Gardens Aglow at Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in Boothbay is open to the public Thursday through Sunday from now through New Year's Day, except Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Reservations are required, and Botanical Gardens staff advise visitors to make reservations as soon as possible.