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A common observation in plots cared for by the same individual or group is that the finest examples rarely remain the same. Gardeners with a deep passion for their plots shuffle things around all the time, with the same confidence and curiosity as those restless interior design lovers who change their curtains biannually with the changing of the clocks.

The most extended period I've managed a plot is five years, but even in that span it seems as though I made a multitude of distinct spaces. The trial-and-error method of lifting something that isn’t terribly happy has been a stalwart of mine since I started pot cultivation on a tiny balcony.

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 playing with new shapes, forms and ideas in your plot, regardless of its dimensions. And I’d contend that right now, this slow, quiet time between the holidays and the new year, as one calendar transitions to another, as the days gradually start to stretch out again, is a beautifully symbolic time to do it.

If you’d rather be more formal, draw a plan of your borders, 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 frozen solid, then postpone it until a calm Saturday 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 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 appearing quite poorly – because the chances are that a new spot will only enhance their situation.

One of my most cherished aspects about gardening is the remarkably fluid process 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 existing or planned, to help get things in their new place. Prepare the landing site before you dig anything up: dig a hole that’s amply deep and more spacious than the anticipated rootball (look to the crown of the plant for a good guide), and add some organic matter or mature compost. Then dig up, place, and firm in securely and provide a thorough watering to celebrate the plant’s new home.

Based on the species, you may not witness 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 skeletal structure; and if it’s not to your liking, have a second rearrangement before spring comes. A new perspective on the garden for the new year.