Hi there,
not gardening in the mountains but growing some Ribes.
Could you give some more information? All in all it sounds ok, and especially Josta and black ribes are quite tough in my experience.

If all Ribes shrubs just sit there, no matter what planting year or actual site that`s odd.

Were those container grown or bare root?
Did you prune when planting?
Do you feed them in spring?
Sure the roots were not pot bound?
Could moles be a problem?

Often it helps to prune them sharply, thinning out old wood completely, feeding them and watching out that they dont lack water when sprouting.

Good luck, bye, Lin

Black currants love being fed. Old horse manure, half-ready compost, liquid feeds are all very acceptable.

And they don't like competition, usually. Not from tree roots or long grass or other shrubs planted too close to them.

With heavy clay: when it's workable in the early summer fork it over and break up the clods down to less than golf ball size at the largest. Smaller is better so the roots can connect. Mix in some well-seasoned compost, at least two gallons' worth - and form a shallow mound of your aerated amended clay. You could add alfalfa meal, or blood and bone, and fork it through, too.

Plant on the mound with your plant's roots spread over, then cover with more mature compost and water in well. Top up the compost if the watering reveals roots.

Then mulch with the half-ripe compost out to about two feet from the stem.

Protect from wind. They're quite shallow-rooted.

I'd do the same for the reds, though they aren't quite as fussy as to food. It seems to be a combination of good drainage below and reliable food supplies, by way of a compost mulch and a feed of well-rotted manure, each year. You might need to apply this in autumn so the ground is still warm. Or in spring, if that's better for your region.

thanks for the ideas. The plants were all bare root, and i didn't feed them or amend the soil because of that. Last year was the first summer they were actually in the ground. So, i will try to give them a good compost feeding this year, and hope that they were just settling in last year. The drainage where they are is good, despite the clay soil, but i could probably do better with mulching them well and keeping the weeds away from them-sometimes that stuff just gets away from you! Thanks so much for the feedback.

And remember that all Ribes are not created equal. Red, white and pink currants (all versions of Ribes rubrum) need different pruning from black currants (Ribes nigrum) and are not as hungry. Also there are many named varieties. If yours came simply as 'red currant' or 'black currant', they may not be top notch cultivars. And 90 is very hot for currants. Mine grow on heavy, damp clay. The black currants get compost every year. The reds are left to themselves. Their highest ever temperature experience (in about 20 years) was probably high 70s for no more than a couple of days. That gives you a clue to the kind of conditions they like.

The first years Ribes grow slow because they enlarge their roots.....so, if they are planted 2 years ago is normal !!! Let's wait to see....photos could help us :)