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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 rearrange elements all the time, with the same confidence and curiosity as those constantly redecorating homeowners who swap out their drapes twice a year with the changing of the clocks.

The longest I’ve ever had a plot is five years, but even in that time I feel as though I made a multitude of distinct spaces. The trial-and-error method of transplanting a specimen that seems somewhat discontent has been a stalwart of mine since I started container gardening on a tiny balcony.

Yes, there’s a risk that moving a plant may stress or test it, but it’s also a free and relatively easy way of experimenting with new shapes, forms and ideas in your plot, regardless of its dimensions. And I’d contend that right now, this peaceful, tranquil period between Christmas and January, between one year and the next, as the days slowly begin to lengthen 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 position specimens 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 calm Saturday in January instead. But if things are simply chilly, moist, and dormant out there, you’ve got the ideal circumstances for rearranging your greenery, 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 cramped in an undersized container or looking deathly – because the chances are that a new spot will only enhance their situation.

One of my favourite things about gardening is the almost free-flowing nature of how ideas develop once I’m out there. But if you’d rather be more formal, 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 amply deep and larger than the expected root mass (look to the crown of the plant for a good guide), and add some organic matter or mature compost. Then lift, plonk, bed down securely and provide a good water to mark the plant’s new home.

Depending on the plant, you won’t see the results of your work for a few weeks yet, but there’s a satisfaction in this, too. While you wait, you can enjoy your new planting arrangement through its skeletal structure; and if it’s not working for you, have a second rearrangement before spring comes. A fresh take on the garden for the new year.