The feeding value of the western wheat grass which grows in the Pierre clay region is very good, and the hay always brings a premium on the market. The other grasses cut are the bluestem and grama. Alfalfa is the principal cultivated hay crop, occupying over 10,000 or more acres. Much of the hay produced is fed to stock, but a large tonnage is shipped to both eastern and western markets and to the Black Hills.

Irish potatoes are an important product in certain sections of the county, especially on the eroded table-lands in the vicinity of Belmont and Marsland, where the sandy soil is very well suited to the crop. About 2,500 acres are devoted to potatoes. Yields as high as 200 bushels per acre are frequently obtained. The production is sold mostly to eastern buyers, who come into the county and contract with the farmers at the time of harvest.

Barley and spelts are at present relatively unimportant crops, but they are gaining in favor on account of their seemingly greater resistance to drought. Very little barley or spelt is marketed.

Fruits, including apples, cherries, and plums, are grown to a small extent. Few orchards receive proper care. Strawberries do well, but are not produced commercially.

Nearly every farm has as much pasture land as cultivated land, and most farms have more. In the region occupied by the Pierre clay, and in the area lying south of the Dawes Table, nearly all of the land is used for grazing.