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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 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 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 several different gardens. 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 tiny balcony.

Yes, there’s a risk that moving a plant may overwhelm or challenge it, but it’s also a free and relatively easy way of playing with new shapes, forms and ideas in your plot, regardless of its dimensions. And I’d contend that right now, this peaceful, tranquil period between the holidays and the new year, 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 prefer a structured approach, draw a plan of your borders, 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 cool, damp and docile 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 wish they were growing better, they’re frustrated in a too-small pot or looking deathly – because the likelihood is that a new spot will only improve things.

One of my favourite things about gardening is the remarkably fluid process 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 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 crown of the plant 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.

Depending on the plant, 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 new perspective on the garden for the new year.