Question
Hi, I have a phalenopsis orchid which seems to be growing at a tremendous rate. It has two flower stems, one blooming and the other half grown. The stem that is blooming has a tiny shoot growing out of the node below the bottom flower. It hasn't put out any leaves so I'm guessing it's a flower stem. Will it hurt my orchid to have put out three flower stems in one year? And what should I do with the stem above the shoot?

Answer
Grace, to some extent, the answer to your question is that if you have a large, healthy plant, there should be no problem with a branch of a flower spike.  This becomes an issue  when the plant has only two or three leaves to support it.  You may cut the flower spike off just above the area where it is branching (ie above the node).