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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. People who truly love their plots rearrange elements all the time, with the same confidence and curiosity as those restless interior design lovers who swap out their drapes biannually with the seasonal time shifts.

The most extended period I've managed a plot is five years, but even in that span it seems as though I made several different gardens. The trial-and-error method of transplanting a specimen that isn’t terribly happy 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 costless and quite simple way of playing with new shapes, forms and ideas in your plot, regardless of its dimensions. And I’d argue 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 symbolically lovely 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 new place.

If you live in an area that has been damp to the point of boggy, 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 shuffling some plants around, because many perennials will be dormant. I recommend you start with the things that are causing you slight concern – whether it’s because you wish they were growing better, they’re cramped in an undersized container or appearing quite poorly – because the likelihood is that a different position 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 rather be more formal, draw up a sketch of your beds, whether current or envisioned, to help place items in their designated spot. Ready the new planting hole before you dig anything up: excavate a space that’s amply deep and more spacious than the anticipated rootball (look to the base of the specimen for a good guide), and add some organic matter or mature compost. Then lift, plonk, bed down securely and provide a thorough watering to mark 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 enjoy your new planting arrangement through its skeletal structure; and if it’s not working for you, have another shuffle before the season arrives. A fresh take on the garden for the new year.