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Something I’ve noticed in plots cared for by the same individual or group is that the best ones never stay the same. Gardeners with a deep passion for their plots rearrange elements all the time, with the same confidence and curiosity as those restless interior design lovers who swap out their drapes 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 time I feel as though I made several different gardens. The suck-it-and-see approach of lifting something that isn’t terribly happy has been a stalwart of mine since I started pot cultivation on a minuscule terrace.

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, no matter the size. And I’d contend 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 symbolically lovely time to do it.

If you’d rather be more formal, draw a plan of your borders, whether existing or planned, to help position specimens in their new place.

If you live in an area that has been damp to the point of boggy, or frozen solid, then postpone it until 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 perennials will be dormant. 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 frustrated in a too-small pot or appearing quite poorly – because the likelihood is that a new spot will only improve things.

One of my most cherished aspects about gardening is the almost free-flowing nature of how plans unfurl 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 place items in their designated spot. Prepare the landing site before you lift anything: excavate a space that’s amply deep and more spacious than the anticipated rootball (look to the crown of the plant for a good guide), and add some organic matter or mature compost. Then lift, plonk, bed down firmly and give a good water to celebrate the plant’s new home.

Depending on the plant, you may not witness the results of your work for a couple of weeks, but there’s a satisfaction in this, too. During this period, you can enjoy your new planting arrangement through its bare-bones framework; 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.