What's wrong with my Granny Smith Tree?!?!

Hi All,

I have two young apples trees in my backyard. One of them is a granny smith tree. In early August, the leaves started falling off from the bottom of the tree and working up. I posted two pictures. Any advice on what this is would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

I'd be tempted to leave it alone and it will probably be just fine.  I'd also take off the three ropes since a tree that size should be able to handle the wind.  Those ropes could lead to girdling and a weaker trunk since the tree doesn't have to work as hard.