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Something I’ve noticed in gardens that have been tended by the same individual or group is that the finest examples rarely remain the same. People who truly love their plots shuffle things around all the time, with the same assurance and inquisitiveness as those constantly redecorating homeowners who change their curtains biannually with the seasonal time shifts.

The longest I’ve ever had a plot is five years, but even in that time I feel as though I made several different gardens. The suck-it-and-see approach of lifting something that seems somewhat discontent has been a trusted strategy since I started container gardening on a tiny balcony.

Yes, there’s a chance that relocating a plant may stress or test it, but it’s also a free and relatively easy way of experimenting with new contours, structures, and concepts in your plot, no matter the size. And I’d contend that right now, this slow, quiet time between Christmas and January, between one year and the next, as the days gradually start to stretch out again, is a symbolically lovely time to do it.

If you’d prefer a structured approach, sketch your beds, whether current or proposed, to help get things in their fresh location.

If you live in an area that has been damp to the point of boggy, or frozen solid, then postpone it until a quiet weekend in January instead. But if things are simply chilly, moist, and dormant out there, you’ve got the perfect conditions for shuffling some plants around, because many long-lived plants are resting. I recommend you begin with the things that are bothering you a bit – whether it’s because you wish they were growing better, they’re frustrated in a too-small pot or appearing quite poorly – because the likelihood is that a different position will only enhance their situation.

One of my most cherished aspects about gardening is the almost free-flowing nature of how ideas develop once I’m in the garden. But if you’d rather be more formal, create a diagram of your beds, whether current or envisioned, to help place items in their new place. Ready the new planting hole before you dig anything up: excavate a space that’s generously deep and larger than the anticipated rootball (look to the crown of the plant for a useful indicator), and add some organic matter or mature compost. Then lift, plonk, bed down securely and provide a good water to celebrate the plant’s new home.

Based on the species, you may not witness the fruits of your labour for a couple of weeks, but there’s a pleasure in this process, too. While you wait, you can enjoy your new planting arrangement through its bare-bones framework; and if it’s not to your liking, have a second rearrangement before the season arrives. A new perspective on the garden for the new year.