ORLOVSKAYA 91 is an early (spring) variety of vetch obtained by individual selection from a hybrid population of lines 21 (K-33747, France) and Lyogovskaya 31/292. The variety is characterized by a medium stem height of about 114 cm and abundant yield. The leaves consist of seven pairs of inverted-ovate green leaflets, while the flowers are large, lilac-purple, with a diameter of 2 mm on a stalk.
The pods of the variety are light brown, straight, and five-seeded. When sown in mixed cultures with oat, the yield reaches 6.36 t/ha (vetch – 4.62 t/ha), and when grown separately, the green mass fluctuates from 24.7 to 27.1 t/ha, dry matter from 5.0 to 6.3 t/ha, and seeds from 1.0 to 2.6 t/ha. The crude protein content in the green mass is 21.4%. The sowing rate for mixed sowings with oats is 1.7 million seeds per hectare.
The variety has moderate resistance to pathogens: ascochitis, root rots, rust, and mosaic. However, it is susceptible to black spot. Vetch "ORLOVSKAYA 91" is suitable for cultivation in temperate climatic conditions where soil temperature at sowing is in the range of 10–15 °C. Due to its high yield and good quality of pods, the variety is widely used as a forage crop, as well as in mixtures with oats for the production of grain products.
