Hellebores as cut flower

I read an article on hellebores in the Financial Times newspaper. The writer had an interesting way to preserve the cut flowers for a flower arrangement. Apparently hellebores don't hold up well and would droop by the end of a day in a vase. Here's the method. You place the stems in boiling water for a half minute-I guess immersing the stem to just below the flower head. Then make a long slit all along the stem from flower head to the cut end. Stick it in a vase with water up to the flower head and it apparently lasts up to 10 days. Here's the url of the article online. You can read it if you sign up for a 15 day free trial.

Unfortunately our lenten rose did not bloom this year. We had about 3 blooms last year the first year I planted it so I expected more this year but no blooms. Quite a disappointment. Maybe I'm not doing something right. The writer of the FT article mentions that he/she heavily feeds the plant in the autumn and cuts back the foliage in early winter. Perhaps I should do that too. The photo is of last year's lenten rose.