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A common observation 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 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 trial-and-error method of lifting something that isn’t terribly happy has been a trusted strategy since I started container gardening on a minuscule terrace.

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 argue that right now, this peaceful, tranquil period between Christmas and January, as one calendar transitions to another, as the days slowly begin to lengthen 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 position specimens 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 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 frustrated in a too-small pot or looking deathly – because the likelihood is that a different position will only enhance their situation.

One of my most cherished aspects about gardening is the remarkably fluid process of how plans unfurl once I’m in the garden. But if you’d prefer a methodical plan, draw up a sketch of your beds, whether existing or planned, to help place items in their new place. Prepare the landing site before you dig anything up: excavate a space 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 organic matter or mature compost. Then dig up, place, and firm in firmly and give a thorough watering to celebrate the plant’s new home.

Depending on the plant, you may not witness the fruits of your labour 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 to your liking, have a second rearrangement before spring comes. A fresh take on the garden for the coming year.