DIY Raised Gardens in NY with very little land

Last year I started a small raised garden.  I started the plants indoors in March and then moved them outdoors into two raised beds made out of 2 by 6's.  Each one was about 8 feet by 3 feet in size.

Last year I used egg cartons to start the plants, they were way too small!  This year I used mostly yogurt containers to start my plants.  The plants seem to thrive in these yogurt containers.  I poked a hole in the bottom of them to help prevent over-watering.  I also bought some plant starter kits.  They were a total flop, only about 8 out of 36 plants grew!  All of the seeds in the yogurt containers grew.  The problem with the starter trays is that the "dirt" must be pointed up before the water is added. Otherwise the dirt expands crosswise and is under too much pressure for the plants to grow.  Also the potting soil that was used in the yogurt containers is far more effective in starting plants.

Here is a picture of them after about a month.  The cardboard type of seed starters are better than the yogurt containers in the long run.  They are ready to go in the ground, half of them are already planted.

Here is what my garden looked like last year when everything was first planted outside.  The peas are in the front row.

This is an update - the garden in June.

This is what the garden looked like at the end of last summer.  The peas have died and cucumber and zucchini have taken over.

Another secret to gardening is to use rain water.  I have a large plastic trash can that fills with rain water to keep the garden watered.  If you must use tap water then let it sit overnight first.