To date, the Bielskis have planted 21,000 eucalyptus trees over 22ha, let 15ha revert to manuka, placed a QE2 covenant on 54.2ha of manuka and regenerating native forest, fenced those areas, and planted hundreds of poplars and willows in consultation with Kevin.
The poles and trees help hold hillsides together, the Bielskis get income from beekeepers who utilise the manuka, and the eucalyptus can offset carbon emissions. Best of all, they can channel time and money into their best land - and have lost no productivity.
"You're just shifting your focus to making the better country work for the property," says Brad.
Jo says the lifestyle is second-to-none, but they have to be realistic about what they can achieve because their farm poses challenges and is affected by extreme storms.
The June storm last year wrecked fences, destroyed tracks, dumped soil onto pasture and caused 100-200 slips on their hilliest slopes.
"On the flats where we had flooding losses, we piled on the super-phosphate and replanted the crops and did the fencing back up, so the flats have gained the productivity. The hills, I don't think you ever regain your productivity," Brad says.
"But the poplar poles we've planted in the back areas that looked like they were going to slip - they've held up pretty good, and we didn't get any slipping in the eucalyptus paddock or the paddock just down from it that's still in quite heavy manuka, whereas the grazing land across the valley had massive damage, so that was quite interesting for me."
The Bielskis' soil conservation funding came from the South Taranaki and Regional Erosion Support Scheme (STRESS) - run by the regional council and available to farmers with a farm plan and Afforestation Grant Scheme.
STRESS helps fund measures that reduce the risk of accelerated erosion, including pole planting, forestry, fencing, land retirement and reversion - especially in the eastern hill country.
It takes six to eight years for roots to stabilise soil, so Jo recommends soil protection sooner rather than later.
"The regional council helps out with funding and information, so why wouldn't you use them?" says Brad.
"If you don't ask, you don't know what's out there."