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A common observation in plots cared for by the same person – or people – 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 assurance and inquisitiveness as those restless interior design lovers who swap out their drapes twice a year with the seasonal time shifts.

The most extended period I've managed 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 isn’t terribly happy has been a trusted strategy since I started container gardening on a minuscule terrace.

Yes, there’s a chance that relocating a plant may overwhelm or challenge it, but it’s also a costless and quite simple way of experimenting with new shapes, forms and ideas in your plot, no matter the size. 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 slowly begin to lengthen 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 fresh location.

If you live in an area that has been damp to the point of boggy, or completely iced over, then save it for a calm Saturday in January instead. But if things are simply chilly, moist, and dormant out there, you’ve got the ideal circumstances for shuffling some plants around, because many perennials will be dormant. I recommend you begin with the things that are bothering you a bit – whether it’s because you hope for more vigorous growth, they’re frustrated in a too-small pot or looking deathly – because the likelihood is that a different position will only improve things.

One of my favourite things 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 existing or planned, to help get things in their new place. Ready the new planting hole before you lift anything: dig a hole that’s generously deep and larger than the anticipated rootball (look to the crown of the plant for a useful indicator), 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 won’t see the results of your work for a couple of weeks, but there’s a satisfaction in this, too. During this period, 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.