The twist ties I found were four inches long. I used five at a time. I would "stack" the five ties and then twist them tightly in the middle for approximately one inch. Getting a tight twist is important, as it will prevent the corn plant from falling apart when you cut the ties in the middle. After the initial twist, I would cut the ties in half. Turn the two outer ties outward, give the three remaining ties a couple of twists, and then turn the two outward ties twist out turn twist tie. Bwahahahahaha...
I could have demonstrated the "technique" seven or eight times while I was attempting to write it out. It took me maybe twenty minutes of playing with the ties to figure out what worked best for me. The hardest part was finding someplace local to order the ties from. I did it with the paper ties, but the paper sides will pop apart sometimes when twisted excessively exposing the inner wire.