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Something I’ve noticed in gardens that have been tended by the same person – or people – is that the best ones never stay the same. People who truly love their plots shuffle things around all the time, with the same confidence and curiosity as those constantly redecorating homeowners who swap out their drapes 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 a multitude of distinct spaces. The suck-it-and-see approach of lifting something that seems somewhat discontent 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, no matter the size. And I’d argue that right now, this slow, quiet time between the holidays and the new year, between one year and the next, 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 current or proposed, to help get things in their new place.

If you live in an area that has been wet enough to become waterlogged, or completely iced over, then postpone it until 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 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 likelihood is that a new spot will only improve things.

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, create a diagram of your beds, whether current or envisioned, to help get things in their designated spot. Prepare the landing site before you lift anything: dig a hole that’s amply deep and more spacious than the expected root mass (look to the base of the specimen for a useful indicator), and add some organic matter or mature compost. Then lift, plonk, bed down firmly and give a good water to celebrate the plant’s new home.

Depending on the plant, you may not witness the fruits of your labour for a couple of weeks, but there’s a pleasure in this process, too. During this period, you can enjoy your new planting arrangement through its skeletal structure; and if it’s not working for you, have another shuffle before spring comes. A new perspective on the garden for the new year.