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A common observation 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 assurance and inquisitiveness 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 span it seems 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 trusted strategy since I started pot cultivation 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 experimenting with new shapes, forms and ideas in your plot, regardless of its dimensions. 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 beautifully symbolic time to do it.

If you’d prefer a structured approach, 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 calm Saturday in January instead. But if things are simply cool, damp and docile out there, you’ve got the ideal circumstances for shuffling some plants around, 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 frustrated in a too-small pot or appearing quite poorly – because the likelihood is that a new spot will only enhance their situation.

One of my most cherished aspects about gardening is the almost free-flowing nature of how ideas develop 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 get things in their new place. Prepare the landing site before you lift anything: dig a hole that’s amply deep and larger than the anticipated rootball (look to the base of the specimen for a useful indicator), and add some organic matter or mature compost. Then lift, plonk, bed down securely and provide a good water to celebrate the plant’s fresh abode.

Based on the species, you won’t see the results of your work for a couple of weeks, but there’s a pleasure in this process, too. While you wait, you can appreciate the revised layout through its skeletal structure; and if it’s not working for you, have another shuffle before the season arrives. A new perspective on the garden for the coming year.