Sugar cane grows not next to water

It's pretty self-explanatory. There was a sugar cane, 4 blocks tall, and it was near water but not directly next to water. I'm sorry, I do not have a picture, but I wrecked it and it gave the proper amount of sugar cane. I did not plant it, it generated.

How to reproduce:

The seed is -637400832

if you make a world to this seed and you will spawn near a river. Follow the river towards the desert and the big hill. Towards the end of it you will see the sugar cane. There is only one.