Is it normal for leaves of an orchid to turn yellow and fall off?

[dlc3172]

Beginner here. Is is normal for the bottom leaves to turn yellow and fall off? I have a phalaenopsis.

[Kmac]

Its pretty common for a phal to lose a bottom leaf. If the rest of the leaves are fine, I wouldn't worry.

The main problem phals run into is being overwatered....they don't want to quite dry out, but they want to get some air to the roots and not get soggy, as that will kill roots. So, if you have any doubts about whether yours is doing OK, checking the roots will often answer the question.

Good luck--

[Scrubber]

Normally with all orchids (or the ones I have come in contact with anyway) the old leaves turn uniformly yellow and drop off one by one as the plant grows.

Scrubber

[EMos]

Welcome dlc3172,
as posted above, there's nothing to worry if it's an older bottom leaf

[Daethen]

Nothing to worry about if it is one or maybe two older leaves on the bottom. If it is more or there are very few leaves to begin with, it could indicate a problem. Checking the roots would be a good place to start. It could indicate root rot. Pictures of the plant would help alot!