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A common observation in gardens that have been tended by the same individual or group is that the best ones never stay 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 twice a year 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 pot cultivation on a minuscule terrace.

Yes, there’s a risk that moving a plant may overwhelm or challenge it, but it’s also a costless and quite simple 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, as one calendar transitions to another, as the days gradually start to stretch out again, is a symbolically lovely time to do it.

If you’d rather be more formal, sketch your beds, whether existing or planned, to help get things in their fresh location.

If you live in an area that has been wet enough to become waterlogged, or completely iced over, then save it for a quiet weekend in January instead. But if things are simply chilly, moist, and dormant out there, you’ve got the perfect conditions for rearranging your greenery, because many long-lived plants are resting. I recommend you start with the things that are causing you slight concern – whether it’s because you hope for more vigorous growth, they’re cramped in an undersized container or looking deathly – because the chances are that a new spot will only improve things.

One of my favourite things about gardening is the almost free-flowing nature of how plans unfurl once I’m out there. But if you’d prefer a methodical plan, create a diagram of your beds, whether existing or planned, to help place items in their new place. Prepare the landing site before you dig anything up: dig a hole that’s generously deep and larger than the expected root mass (look to the base of the specimen for a good guide), and add some mulch or well-rotted compost. Then dig up, place, and firm in firmly and give a thorough watering to celebrate the plant’s fresh abode.

Based on the species, you won’t see the results of your work for a few weeks yet, but there’s a pleasure in this process, too. While you wait, you can appreciate the revised layout through its bare-bones framework; and if it’s not working for you, have a second rearrangement before the season arrives. A fresh take on the garden for the coming year.