My Orchid Dropped All Its Flowers. Is It Dead or Just Resting?

Deep breath: your orchid is almost certainly fine. Firm green leaves are the tell. A phalaenopsis usually blooms for one to three months, and then every flower shrivels and drops, often within days of each other. That is not death, it is the end of the show. The plant is now shifting its energy into roots and leaves, which is exactly what it should be doing.

What to do now

1. Check the basics. Firm green leaves and plump, silvery green roots mean a healthy plant. Soft yellow leaves or brown mushy roots would point to watering trouble instead.
2. Deal with the flower spike. If it turns brown and dry, cut it near the base. If it stays green, you can leave it, since a green spike sometimes branches and reblooms.
3. Water by the roots, not the calendar. Water when the roots look silvery and the pot feels light, and never let it sit in a puddle.
4. Keep it in bright, indirect light and feed lightly at the feeding-chart rate while it grows new leaves.
5. Give it a cool autumn. Slightly cooler nights for a few weeks usually trigger the next flower spike.

What to expect

Expect a quiet stretch of a few months while it grows a new leaf or two, then a fresh spike, often in winter. Rebloom typically lands six to twelve months after the last flower drops. Gift orchids that get this treatment usually outlive everyone's expectations by years.