Habenaria repens (Water-spider Bog Orchid)

If you look closely, this native orchid really does look like it is dancing. The tiny, spidery flowers of Habenaria repens seem to hover in motion, giving rise to its charming common name - Water-spider Bog Orchid, also called Floating Orchid.

Habenaria repens is one of the few orchids that can live both on land and in water. It naturally grows in wet ditches, marshes, meadows, and along pond and lake edges, and it can even form floating mats in still water. In warm climates, it may bloom almost year-round, sending up tall flower spikes packed with 10-50 delicate greenish-white blooms. The narrow, spider-like petals and lip are designed to attract pollinators, while the light green sepals blend perfectly into wetland surroundings.

This orchid produces several yellow-green leaves along its stem, with smaller leaves near the flower spike. It prefers consistently moist to wet conditions and slightly acidic soil. In cultivation, it does best in bog gardens, shallow pond margins, alongside carnivorous plants like pitcher plants, or even in containers kept very wet.

Small, subtle, and easy to overlook at first glance, Habenaria repens rewards anyone who stops and looks closely. Once you see that little flower dancing, you will never forget it.

Habenaria repens blooms throughout the year in wet ditches, meadows, marshes and along shorelines.

It can be a terrestrial or truly aquatic orchid species and has been known to form floating mats in stagnant pools. This species produces 3-8 yellow green leaves that emerge from the stem and gradually reduce in size towards the inflorescence. The inflorescence has 10-50 flowers arranged in a densely flowered raceme. The sepals are light green and the petals and lip of each flower are a greenish white and spidery looking.