Is there a simple way of stopping ants invading the apple trees.

I bought some grease band which is a kind of sticky tape that you wrap
around the trunk (with the sticky facing outwards).

However this is tricky to fit so the ants can't just crawl under it. They
also seem to be able to cross it, even if it is very slowly.

Is there some sort of sticky paste that I can just paint directly onto the
trunk, or something homemade?

Any ideas?

Thanks

Helen