The Perfect Moment to Show Courage and Undertake a Reshuffle.

Something I’ve noticed in plots cared for by the same person – or people – is that the finest examples rarely remain the same. People who truly love their plots rearrange elements all the time, with the same confidence and curiosity as those restless interior design lovers who swap out their drapes biannually with the seasonal time shifts.

The most extended period I've managed 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 stalwart of mine 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 playing with new contours, structures, and concepts 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 beautifully symbolic time to do it.

If you’d prefer a structured approach, draw a plan of your borders, 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 frozen solid, then save it for a calm Saturday in January instead. But if things are simply cool, damp and docile out there, you’ve got the ideal circumstances for rearranging your greenery, because many long-lived plants are resting. I recommend you start 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 chances are that a new spot will only improve things.

One of my favourite things about gardening is the almost free-flowing nature of how ideas develop once I’m in the garden. But if you’d rather be more formal, draw up a sketch of your beds, whether current or envisioned, 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 more spacious than the anticipated rootball (look to the base of the specimen for a useful indicator), and add some organic matter or mature compost. Then dig up, place, and firm in securely and provide a good water to celebrate the plant’s fresh abode.

Based on the species, you may not witness the fruits of your labour for a few weeks yet, but there’s a pleasure in this process, too. While you wait, you can appreciate the revised layout through its bare-bones framework; and if it’s not to your liking, have another shuffle before spring comes. A fresh take on the garden for the new year.