Question
I have Bermuda Grass where I want to put a garden.

Can I just start tilling and raking?

Thank You

Answer
I wish I had good news and it could be that easy!  

IF the grass has not gone dormant, yet, you'll have to kill it to the roots with Roundup Pro or a similar product (adding extra product won't make it MORE dead, so follow the label directions).  Be carful, and don't use a product designed to KEEP on killing (like a total-kill product for gravel driveway use, etc.), or you'll not be able to plant a garden where the grass is for quite a while, if ever!

First you water it to get it growing vigorously.  Then, you feed it the root-poison, then water it some more, to get the product down into the VERY invasive root network.  You may have to poison it twice to get it all good and dead.

THEN you have the pleasure of ripping it out.  All totaled, it can be up to a three week process.  

Have you had a frost, yet?  If you live in California / Florida, then disregard. If it has already gone dormant, then the roundup will have no effect on it, and you'll have a very healthy looking patch of grass come Spring - so you might as well wait until then to kill it off.

Black plastic, heavy mulch, or the newspaper method will not remove this type of grass, but just drive it's roots deeper into the soil.  I know.  I've had to dig out roots two feet down, growing vigorously throughout a bed that the previous owner neglected to properly treat before planting all those nice plants.  What a pain!

Save yourself the grief & good luck!  -Marc