cattleya - dried sheath/spike removal question

[SamandAnne]

Hello,

I'm new to orchids, and I have a cattleya slc best friend 'cleopatra' that just finished blooming. When the flowers died, I pulled on them and they came off. I'm left with a little spike that's drying up and what looks like a dried sheath around it and the stem.

I'm wondering, can I remove these? And if so, how? What's best for the plant?

Thanks for your help!

Photos attached for more explanation.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Let them dry out on their own. Then cut with a pair of scissors. The best part of this is you don't need to sterilize the scissors!

[SamandAnne]

Great, thank you! Should I leave alone the sheath the surrounds the entire stem...just let it go? Or do I remove that too? (I'm thinking that wouldn't be with scissors? )

I'll wait awhile for the top spike to completely dry out before cutting, thanks!

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

You can remove them too if you like.

[SamandAnne]

Great, thanks for your help!