how do you prune a butterfly orchid after the blooms have fallen?

Answer 1

Go to where the spike comes out of the ground, every so often you will see nodes or marks on the stem, count three of them, then prune with a sterile knife about 1/8 of an inch above that, it will take a while, because it is an orchid, to rebloom, then water and fertilize as usual.

Answer 2

Cut the spike off with a sterile knife.