Best way to convert a flower bed back to a small lawn?

A few years ago in our back garden, there was one small area of isolated lawn about 5m x .8m which I converted into a flower bed. I filled it with lots of bulbs, some small roses and every year some bedding plants. It is much harder to keep than I thought and the weeds are terrible so have decided to change back to a lawn. Any tips on best way to go about this, thinking of digging it all up, digging the roses out individually, trying to pick any bulbs i can find, then spraying some weedkiller and then planting grass seed? Worried the weedkiller will affect grass seeds growth and is it getting late in the year to be putting grass seed down?

Hi,

What would you like to do with it... Just grass? Depending on the layout, specifically the roses, you could just border these & grass the rest... during the spring, the bulbs will flower & you will have a nice mix of grass / bulbs / roses... the only issue at that stage is the cutting of the grass & how... you could leave it "go to meadow"... long grass intersected with bulbs... & just strim the top...does look nice...

Alternatively, dig everything up, get as many bulbs out as you can...If you do that now & spray it... the weeds will return in spring... you could spray again early in the new year or just dig out the weeds then (assuming there isn't many). Make sure the earth is prepared for the grass seed... adequate top soil & dig / rake in some manure a couple of weeks before. Don't add grass fertiliser to the soil before seeding or just after feeding as that may scorch the grass & kill it...

Have a read of: [broken link removed]

For an area of that size, the best solution by far is to buy roll-out sods. Many websites give complex advice on it, but for a small area, much of this is unnecessary. You can lay them now - and apart from removing surface weeds and making sure that the surface is level the work involved is minimal. Use a carving knife to cut to size, and then press it in with your shoes/boots and water it if it is dry. Very few weeds, if any, will ever penetrate, and you will have a beautiful lawn immediately. There are a number of grades available from the better suppliers, but the cost for this area should be well below €50 if you collect and lay them yourself.

thanks for the 2 great ideas