Now is the Time to Show Courage and Undertake a Reshuffle.
Something I’ve noticed in gardens that have been tended 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 constantly redecorating homeowners who change their curtains biannually 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 trial-and-error method of lifting something that seems somewhat discontent has been a stalwart of mine since I started container gardening on a tiny balcony.
Yes, there’s a chance that relocating a plant may stress or test it, but it’s also a free and relatively easy way of playing with new shapes, forms and ideas 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 symbolically lovely time to do it.
If you’d prefer a structured approach, draw a plan of your borders, whether current or proposed, to help position specimens in their new place.
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 long-lived plants are resting. I recommend you start with the things that are bothering you a bit – whether it’s because you hope for more vigorous growth, they’re cramped in an undersized container or appearing quite poorly – because the likelihood is that a different position will only improve things.
One of my favourite things about gardening is the remarkably fluid process of how ideas develop once I’m out there. But if you’d prefer a methodical plan, create a diagram of your beds, whether current or envisioned, to help place items in their new place. Prepare the landing site before you dig anything up: excavate a space that’s amply 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 firmly and give a thorough watering to mark the plant’s new home.
Depending on the plant, you won’t see the results of your work for a couple of weeks, but there’s a satisfaction in this, too. While you wait, you can appreciate the revised layout through its bare-bones framework; and if it’s not to your liking, have a second rearrangement before spring comes. A new perspective on the garden for the new year.
