Something I’ve noticed in plots cared for by the same person – or people – is that the best ones never stay 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 seasonal time shifts.
The longest I’ve ever had a plot is five years, but even in that span it seems as though I made a multitude of distinct spaces. The suck-it-and-see approach 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 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, no matter the size. And I’d contend that right now, this slow, quiet time between the holidays and the new year, between one year and the next, as the days slowly begin to lengthen 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 position specimens in their fresh location.
If you live in an area that has been wet enough to become waterlogged, or frozen solid, then postpone it until a quiet weekend in January instead. But if things are simply chilly, moist, and dormant out there, you’ve got the ideal circumstances for rearranging your greenery, because many perennials will be dormant. I recommend you begin with the things that are bothering you a bit – whether it’s because you hope for more vigorous growth, they’re frustrated in a too-small pot 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 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 designated spot. Prepare the landing site before you dig anything up: excavate a space that’s amply deep and more spacious 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 dig up, place, and firm in securely and provide a thorough watering to celebrate the plant’s fresh abode.
Depending on the plant, you won’t see the results of your work for a few weeks yet, but there’s a satisfaction in this, too. While you wait, you can appreciate the revised layout through its skeletal structure; and if it’s not working for you, have another shuffle before the season arrives. A fresh take on the garden for the coming year.
