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Something I’ve noticed in gardens that have been tended by the same individual or group is that the finest examples rarely remain the same. People who truly love their plots rearrange elements 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 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 tiny balcony.

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 playing with new contours, structures, and concepts in your plot, regardless of its dimensions. And I’d argue that right now, this slow, quiet time between Christmas and January, as one calendar transitions to another, 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 get things in their new place.

If you live in an area that has been wet enough to become waterlogged, or frozen solid, then postpone it until 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 long-lived plants are resting. I recommend you start with the things that are causing you slight concern – whether it’s because you hope for more vigorous growth, they’re cramped in an undersized container or looking deathly – because the chances are that a different position 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, create a diagram 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 generously deep and larger 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.

Depending on the plant, you won’t see the results of your work for a few weeks yet, but there’s a pleasure in this process, 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 fresh take on the garden for the new year.