Habenaria bicolor Conrath & Kraenzl., Vierteljahrsschr. Naturf. Ges. Zürich 51: 131 (1906).
Description:
Slender terrestrial herb up to 75 cm high, with villous tuber c. 5 cm long. Stem leafy; leaves 8–18 cm long, 3–7 mm wide, linear, acute, conduplicate. Inflorescence 10–23 × 1–1.8 cm, densely many-flowered; bracts ovate, acute, longer than the ovary, up to 27 mm long at the base of the inflorescence. Flowers green, the petals and lip drying black, the sepals mid-brown. Ovary and pedicel c. 10 mm long. Dorsal sepal 4–5 × 1–2 mm, lanceolate, acute, erect; lateral sepals 3.5–5.5 × 0.8–1.2 mm, lanceolate, acute, projecting forwards or upwards. Petals 4 mm long, lanceolate, lying beside dorsal sepal. Lip c. 3.5 mm long, 3-lobed; mid-lobe horizontal, 2.5–3 mm long; side lobes deflexed, 2–2.5 mm long; all lobes linear, 0.1–0.3 mm wide; spur 6–8 mm long, slender, parallel to ovary. Stigmatic arms very short.
Habitat:
Open woodland, amongst granite rocks c. 1800 m.
Cultivation:
As given for the genus.
Distribution:
Zimbabwe, Gauteng
References:
Flora Capensis, Vol 5, Part 3, page 3, (1913) Author: (By R. A. ROLFE.); La Croix, I. & Cribb, P.J. (1995). Orchidaceae (Part 1) Flora Zambesiaca 11(1)
Images:
Click on each image to see a larger version.

Habitat/In situ	Habitat/In situ
Photograph© Lourens Grobler. Image used with kind permission.	Photograph© Lourens Grobler. Image used with kind permission.