Now is the Time to Show Courage and Give Your Garden a Reshuffle.
A common observation in gardens that have been tended 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 swap out their drapes 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 a multitude of distinct spaces. The suck-it-and-see approach of lifting something that seems somewhat discontent has been a stalwart of mine since I started pot cultivation 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 experimenting with new shapes, forms and ideas in your plot, no matter the size. And I’d argue that right now, this peaceful, tranquil period between the holidays and the new year, between one year and the next, 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 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 save it for a calm Saturday in January instead. But if things are simply chilly, moist, and dormant out there, you’ve got the perfect conditions for rearranging your greenery, because many long-lived plants are resting. 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 appearing quite poorly – because the chances are that a new spot will only enhance their situation.
One of my most cherished aspects about gardening is the remarkably fluid process of how plans unfurl once I’m out there. But if you’d rather be more formal, draw up a sketch of your beds, whether current or envisioned, to help get things in their new place. Ready the new planting hole before you dig anything up: excavate a space 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 thorough watering to celebrate the plant’s new home.
Depending on the plant, you won’t see the fruits of your labour 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 bare-bones framework; and if it’s not working for you, have a second rearrangement before the season arrives. A new perspective on the garden for the new year.
