I think last year's drought did wonderful things for this years growth. I think it's a little like a fire, you know how when acres are burned badly, nothing left but blackened remains - suddenly new growth starts and it's even more lush than ever before. Seems like the drought did that for me. By the end of July my perennials were not black, but brown and crispy, just totally burned to death. I just chopped all the debris up, raked it in and felt like giving up. Suddenly this spring with all the rains and slow rising temps, everything was lush, healthier than ever before and until just the last few days, even my bloomed out roses had wonderful foliage. Not so much now for the roses because I think there might be a few Japanese beetles out there. But everything else - my daylilies could not wait to bloom and they are en masse right now.
The old green apple tree that is on the line between my neighbor and me, is not as productive, nor was it last year. There are still apples, but not as many as years before. It looks pretty shaggy, but everything else is great, including the asparagus that I thought I'd lost. Strawberries, not so great, and I'll have to replace some of them, but the ones I had were just fine.
So I don't know, but I do think the drought was followed by unusual things and maybe a reduction in your apple bug population was one of them. I've never been in a bad drought before, so I have nothing for comparison. It's just different this year.
Blackberries and apples are looking good this year, too. This is the first year ever that I've noticed near perfect-looking fruit on our naturally grown apple trees. I wonder if last year's fruitless season slowed the apple bug populations down that much, or maybe they're just behind schedule?
