Now is the Time to Show Courage and Undertake a Complete Reorganization.

A common observation in plots cared for by the same individual or group 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 restless interior design lovers who change their curtains twice a year with the changing of the clocks.

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 suck-it-and-see approach of transplanting a specimen that isn’t terribly happy has been a trusted strategy since I started pot cultivation on a minuscule terrace.

Yes, there’s a risk that moving a plant may stress or test it, but it’s also a costless and quite simple way of experimenting with new contours, structures, and concepts in your plot, no matter the size. And I’d argue that right now, this peaceful, tranquil period between Christmas and January, 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 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 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 cool, damp and docile 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 appearing quite poorly – because the chances are that a different position will only enhance their situation.

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 rather be more formal, 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: excavate a space that’s generously deep and more spacious than the expected root mass (look to the base of the specimen for a good guide), and add some mulch or well-rotted compost. Then dig up, place, and firm in firmly and give a good water to mark the plant’s new home.

Based on the species, you may not witness the results of your work 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 to your liking, have another shuffle before spring comes. A fresh take on the garden for the new year.