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Silhouette of a goat inside a square frame, representing a farm logo for agricultural branding.

About

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Our Farm

Kokoro (心 ) is a Japanese word that means "with heart" or "to have heart". Kokoro conveys the spirit with which we strive to farm, our commitment to community, and the passion of the farmers and mentors with whom we have worked and continue to inspire us. Kokoro Flowers established 2016, leased land from 2016 to 2021. We were able to secure land in the fall of 2021 after receiving a land purchase proposal from a couple of seasoned farmers whose intent to transition land to the next generation of farmers is resolute. Through the winter and spring, we focused on projects to support the transition of our farm, and infrastructure for the business and our employees of initial year in operation. We are in partnership with Meara's sister Kylie, owner of Three Seed Farm, where as a team we will continue to put our best feet forward in planning, stewardship, and development of the farm. Much has been accomplished, with much left to do. We are grateful to all of the support from family, friends, and neighbors, and know we are in a rare and privileged position. We hope in future years to offer opportunities to other beginning farmers who are faced with many different challenges in starting a farm.

Our Products

Our Practices

Our mission is to provide our communities with local, accessible, and ethically raised flowers and produce. We grow organically with sustainable and regenerative practices that include rotational cover crop and grazing, and no chemical fertilizers or herbicides. We also aim to put the land, water, soil, and pollinators first to ensure the immediate and long-term health of our ecosystem. We believe if the source is healthy, we can grow healthy food and flowers for our customers. It is also our mission to engage with our community's social networks and focus on the inclusivity of all members of our communities. Whether it be economic, cultural, or social differences, our drive is to work on making our products available to anyone.

Finally, the members of Kokoro Farm are on stolen land and acknowledge the implications and complications. It is our commitment as the current caretakers, to continue implementing land-focused practices, and put the work into connecting, learning, and hearing from members of our communities to learn how to better serve.

Meet the Farmers

Meara

Meara was born and raised in Colorado, spending a good bit of each year with her mother’s family in Japan. Meara grew up with strong bicultural influences — learning English and Japanese as native languages. Her heritage has shaped the way she thinks about life, food, flowers, and seasonal growing.

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Meara learned basic vegetable gardening skills from her father in the family garden, and preparation of the garden vegetables for Japanese dishes from her mother. From an early age, Meara enjoyed each season of the year and eagerly anticipated the foods and changes that they brought. Meara’s farming journey began in 2011 with a summer internship at a small organic farm in Paonia, Colorado. Meara spent three summers in Paonia working on organic farms, learning about production and marketing, and experiencing the challenges and rewards of small-scale organic family-farm life. Meara attended the University of Montana, graduating with a BS in Resource Conservation. During the summers, she continued her journey on an organic vegetable farm in Moiese, Montana. Kokoro Flowers began in 2015 with a 1/4 acre of leased land on the farm in Moiese — now with Travis as a partner. Meara and Travis moved to the Bozeman area in 2016 to pursue opportunities to lease more land. Kokoro Flowers has been growing flowers for the local market ever since. In 2021 Meara realized a childhood dream of farming with her sister. Meara, Travis, and Kylie share a 23-acre organic farm where they operate separate businesses. Meara and Travis continue to grow flowers. Kylie produces seeds at Three Seed Farm. Together they grow vegetables.

Travis

Travis was born in Rock Springs, Wyoming, moved around a bit during his adolescent years, landing in Boise, Idaho as a young adult. In Idaho — with the most continuous whitewater river miles in the contiguous United States — Travis developed a passion (obsession?) for white water kayaking and other outdoor adventures.

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Wildland firefighting seemed like a good vocation to support and broaden his adventures. Travis spent six years with the Forest Service, the latter part, working at a helicopter-rappel base, tied to wildland fire support ranging from specialized initial response to extended large fire support. Travis and Meara met in 2012. Three years later, Travis was able to spend most of the 2015 summer working alongside Meara at a diverse organic vegetable farm. Realizing their great compatibility in working together, while also considering Meara’s experience, they found land to lease for the following year in Bozeman, MT. For the first year of the business, Travis continued to work for the Forest service but with a less demanding schedule in a wilderness trails position. The next year, 2017, Travis committed to full-time farming. Travis has the lead in all phases of infrastructure development, business affairs and client relationships. The combination of Travis and Meara’s skills is transforming Kokoro Flowers from a dream to reality.