Chiropractor in Kendall Park, NJ

Has your quality of life been affected because of back pain? You're not alone - Harvard Health tells us that almost 85% of people in the US have back pain so severe that they see a doctor at least once in their lifetime. Unfortunately, these problems often start small but end up becoming severe issues like sciatica. For active people and athletes, dealing with back pain isn't just compromising; it's life-changing.

And while many people will tell you that having a "back problem" is something you'll have to deal with for the rest of your life, that's far from the case. The good news is that seeing a chiropractor in Kendall Park can provide you with the relief needed to live a healthy, active life without giving up the things you love most, like sports and spending time with your family.

Of the millions of Americans who suffer from back pain daily, many have found long-lasting relief through the same chiropractic care offered at NJ Sports Spine & Wellness. But what exactly is chiropractic care, and how does it help?

Service Areas

Chiropractic care is a drug-free, non-invasive approach to overall wellness and healing that focuses on correcting issues with your musculoskeletal system. When performed by a licensed chiropractor, it can alleviate and even eliminate common problems such as:

Back Pain
Shoulder Pain
Neck Pain
Headaches
Sciatica

Knee Pain
Automobile Injuries
Sports Injuries
Arthritis
Body Aches

To treat your conditions and help reduce your pain, chiropractors use time-tested, hands-on techniques to adjust your spine, neck, back, and other joints throughout your body to restore proper function, mobility, and alignment. Once your body is in proper alignment, it functions optimally, leading to improved overall wellness and health.

Unlike some sports rehab clinics in The Garden State, chiropractors from NJ Sports Spine & Wellness work with you one-on-one to develop a personalized treatment plan that addresses your specific goals and needs relating to your pain and ability to live a normal life. Because our team takes a holistic approach to healthcare, we cover all aspects of your health and wellness when developing your chiropractic treatment plan. That way, we increase your chances of living a fulfilling life free of pain and worry about throwing your back out.

What are the Benefits of Seeing a Chiropractor in Kendall Park, NJ?

Seeing a chiropractor can quite literally change your life for the better. According to the American Chiropractic Association, in general, chiropractic therapy is a more effective solution for back pain than other treatments like addictive pain pills, surgeries, and yoga. When combined with services like physical therapy, occupational therapy, and acupuncture, chiropractic care may be the key you need to open the door to a pain-free life.

Some of the many benefits of seeing a reliable, licensed chiropractor include the following:

Relief from Back Pain

Perhaps the most obvious reason to make an appointment with a chiropractor is for back pain relief. Some people only need to see a chiropractor when they have occasional back pain, such as when they wake up in the morning. Others, such as those who have been in serious car accidents, need regular chiropractic adjustments and therapies, which are often supplemented with techniques like physical therapy and acupuncture.

There are many causes of back pain that range from advanced conditions like having sciatica and herniated discs to everyday issues like poor posture and sleeping in a harmful position. Your chiropractor's job is to pinpoint the cause(s) of your back pain and build a customized plan to address your musculoskeletal conditions. Once that happens, pain relief follows shortly after.

At New Jersey Sports Spine & Wellness, we craft personalized chiropractic plans for every patient we treat, with the goal of avoiding harmful surgeries and addictive medicines.

Relief from Headaches

If you've never experienced a headache in your life, you're exceedingly rare. Just about every American will suffer from a headache at some point or another. For some, headaches only happen occasionally and are not much more than an annoyance. For others, headaches evolve into crippling migraines that can affect quality of life, ability to work, and much more.

If you find yourself digging into a bottle of Aspirin or something stronger when you have a headache, it might be time to visit an NJSSW chiropractor.

Improved Sleep

Do you wake up in the morning feeling like you didn't sleep a wink the previous night? Do you have to take sleep aides like Ambien in order to drift off to dreamland? If you have chronic back pain, getting a full night's rest is easier said than done. From misaligned spines to improper sleeping posture, your chiropractor in Kendall Park can use manipulation therapy and other techniques to boost blood flow and align your vertebrae, so your body can heal itself and help you rest better.

Reduced Anxiety and Stress

One of the best things about seeing your chiropractor is that when your session is over, you often feel great. The pain relief feels phenomenal. When you're not in pain, you have a more positive outlook on life, and often enjoy better sleep, blood pressure, and even sexual relations. It makes sense, then, that chiropractic care has been shown to help reduce stress and anxiety, which promotes relaxation and improved mental health.

Pain And Spine Management Kendall Park, NJ

Athletic Performance

At NJ Sports Spine & Wellness, we work with a long list of athletes who suffer from sports injuries and other problems that can manifest from being active. For professional athletes, having a trustworthy chiropractor to care for them is needed for their careers. But you don't have to be a pro athlete to benefit from chiropractic care. Ordinary people that enjoy active lifestyles can reap tremendous rewards through chiropractic care, such as improved range of motion and relief from compressed discs.

Whether you enjoy impromptu games of tag football or simply want to play with your kids, seeing a chiropractor can help you be healthy and active without fighting back, neck, and joint pain. That's especially true when chiropractic therapy is used in conjunction with acupuncture, physical therapy, or occupational therapy.ies and addictive medicines.

Common Chiropractic Techniques

Your NJ Sports Spine & Wellness chiropractor in Kendall Park may use a range of techniques to restore function and alignment in your body. Some of the most common techniques our chiropractors use include:

Mobilization: This chiropractic strategy uses gentle movements to help restore joint functionality and proper spinal alignment.
Manipulation: Spinal manipulation uses controlled force and gravity to correct spinal issues and restore healthy alignment.
Electrical Stimulation: With this therapy, electrical currents are used to stimulate your muscles and help heal injuries faster.
Soft Tissue Therapy: This type of massage and other hands-on techniques relieve muscle tension while providing pain relief and promoting soft tissue health.
Trigger Point Therapy: With this therapy, the targeted use of pressure is used to release tension and improve functionality across specific areas of your body.
Ultrasounds: High-frequency sound waves can break up plaque and help stimulate your body's natural healing processes for injuries and wounds.

Reclaim Your Active Life with Physical Therapy and Chiropractic Care

Life has a habit of being unexpected. Sure, some surprises only hurt your bank account, like last-minute renovations in your home. But severe incidents, like car accidents, can inflict physical injuries that cause you long-term pain. These problems, like neck and back injuries, affect many Americans daily. Even worse, many hardworking people turn to risky surgeries and addictive pain medications, only to find themselves deep in a hole that seems impossible to get out of.

If you suffer from serious range-of-motion issues or you're in chronic pain, it's important to know that you have treatment choices. You don't have to put your health at risk to relieve your pain. One of the most successful non-invasive treatments offered for pain is physical therapy. The main goal of physical therapy is to restore movement and function to patients affected by illness, injury, or disability.

Physical therapists work with patients of all ages and abilities, from children to elderly adults, to help them overcome physical limitations and improve their quality of life. At NJ Sports Spine & Wellness, our physical therapists help treat a wide range of conditions, from neck pain and spinal cord injuries to back pain and arthritis.

Once our PTs have made headway, they will often use our chiropractic therapy to provide the patient with more relief. Having the option of both chiropractic and physical therapy is often very effective, because your chiropractor in Kendall Park can address nerve irritation and joint dysfunction while your physical therapist helps retrain your musculoskeletal system, allowing your body to heal faster.

Some of the biggest benefits of using physical therapy along with chiropractic care include:

Restoring Mobility After Injury, Surgery, or Illness
Developing Flexibility and Strength for Physical Activities
Safe Relief from Chronic Pain
Improved Spine and Joint Health
Enhanced Knowledge of Your Body and How to Prevent Injuries

Herniated Disk Treatment Kendall Park, NJ

Back Pain Specialist Near Me Kendall Park, NJ

Engage in Activities of Daily Living with Occupational Therapy and Chiropractic Therapy

Occupational therapy, or OT, is to help patients of all ages and abilities engage in activities of daily living, or ADL. Often, that means helping patients reclaim the ability to continue working, going to school, accomplishing day-to-day tasks, or other activities common to daily living.

Occupational therapy can benefit individuals going through many conditions, such as traumatic brain injuries, strokes, spinal cord injuries, autism spectrum disorders, developmental delays, and chronic pain. The end goal of occupational therapy is to help patients achieve the maximum level of independence and participation in their daily lives. If pain, discomfort, weakness, fatigue, or fear prevent you from participating in activities you love, an OT from NJ Sports Spine & Wellness could become the MVP of your wellness journey.

To give our patients the most complete pain relief and recovery options, our doctors and practitioners will often lean on the expertise of both a physical therapist and a chiropractor in Kendall Park. By working together, your PT, OT, and chiropractor can provide you with a comprehensive approach to total-body functionality, from your spine and joints to your mind and range of motion.

Some of the most common benefits of using OT with chiropractic care include:

Chronic Pain Relief
Improvement of Both Physical and Mental, Emotional, or Developmental Disabilities
Improved Development of Fine Motor Skills
Better Spine and Musculoskeletal Health
Help with Sensory Processing Disorders
Much More

732-316-5895

Back Pain Doctor Near Me Kendall Park, NJ

Boost Self-Healing Processes with Acupuncture and Chiropractic Care

Acupuncture boosts your body's functions and helps improve its ability to heal through anatomic site stimulation - usually called acupuncture points or acupoints. To stimulate these points, acupuncturists at NJ Sports Spine & Wellness insert fine, sterile needles into your skin. Most patients don't feel any pain as needles are applied. Typically, needles are left in the skin up to 30 minutes. After your session, it's normal to feel incredibly relaxed.

While some practitioners still adhere to traditional philosophies, modern acupuncturists take an integrative approach to the therapy. Today, professional acupuncturists use these techniques to stimulate your body's natural healing and pain-fighting processes. When coupled with personalized care from a chiropractor in Kendall Park as well as physical or occupational therapy, you can find real relief from the physical and emotional roadblocks holding you back. Some of the most reported benefits of acupuncture treatment include:

Back, Neck, and General Pain Relief
Improved Digestion and Relief from IBS and Acid Reflux
Relief from Menstrual Cramps
Treatment for Allergies and Asthma
Enhanced Blood Flow
Much More

During an acupuncture session, you may feel a slight sensation of warmth or tingling at the needle's site of insertion. Generally speaking, acupuncture is painless and perfectly safe for you to consider. In fact, many practitioners and doctors recommend combining acupuncture with other treatment options like chiropractic adjustments.

Though acupuncture and chiropractic therapies come from different origins, both include non-invasive, holistic, and gentle approaches that don't require drugs to work. They also both facilitate total-body healing by addressing the underlying causes of your symptoms - not just the symptoms themselves.

Because acupuncture is known to release endorphins and improve blood flow, having a session prior to a chiropractic adjustment can be very beneficial. That's because, after acupuncture, your muscles are less stiff, more relaxed, and easier to adjust effectively. Over time, as you combine acupuncture and chiropractic therapy, you'll benefit from less inflammation and less pain as you heal from injuries or musculoskeletal conditions. That same truth applies to patients who undergo serious chiropractic adjustments.

Trust the NJ Sports Spine & Wellness Difference

At NJ Sports Spine & Wellness, our staff consists of licensed and highly-trained professionals, including specialists focusing on:

Pain Management
Sports Medicine
Chiropractic Therapy

Physical Therapy
Occupational Therapy
Acupuncture

Contact Us

732-316-5895

Every member of our team believes that the path to wellness and a pain-free life begins with customized treatment plans that cater to your needs and body. Unlike some chiropractors in Kendall Park, we do not treat on-the-surface symptoms with one-size-fits-all therapies. We do not rely on powerful pain medications to mask your pain or invasive surgeries that require weeks of recovery. Instead, we address the root causes of your pain so that we can help you live the happy, healthy life you're craving.

To achieve that goal, we'll conduct an in-depth evaluation to learn about your medical history. We'll also perform diagnostic tests and speak with you one-on-one to get a better sense of your needs. From there, we'll recommend the therapies that can give you a new lease on life and be there for every milestone you hit.

If you're fed up of living with the limits of pain and lack of mobility, we're here to help you break free. Contact our office today to get started.

33 Andover Dr, Kendall Park, NJ 08824

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Weird NJ: The bowling ball house upsets neighbors

It was a few years back and we were traveling along Cohawkin Road in the Gloucester County town of Clarksboro when first caught our first glimpse of what has come to be known as the “Bowling Ball House.”We pulled into the driveway of Stanley Szymansky, who’s property is lined from front yard to back with shiny multicolored bowling balls mounted on metal stakes.This is not the first bowling ball house we’ve come across here at Weird NJ over the past 25 years. The property has a similar appe...

We pulled into the driveway of Stanley Szymansky, who’s property is lined from front yard to back with shiny multicolored bowling balls mounted on metal stakes.

This is not the first bowling ball house we’ve come across here at Weird NJ over the past 25 years. The property has a similar appearance the former home of the late Richie Zorzi in Kendall Park, as both houses are not only adorned with bowling balls, but also rocking horses. We fear this rocking horse/bowling ball combination may be a trend, or maybe just a coincidence. It’s time to find out.

“I’ve been wondering when Weird NJ was going to show up!” Szymansky told us. It was about 10 years ago that Szymansky, then a spry 80-year-old, started his display with about a dozen bowling balls he had in his collection, placing them outside on his property.

“The neighbors didn’t like them,” Szymansky remembers, “so they called the township on me. The township came down and told me I had to get rid of them, and I told them I ain’t getting rid of them, and if you want to talk to me again, you can talk to me through my lawyer!”

The town never called on Szymansky again, but soon more and more bowling balls started showing up on his property. (A similar story was related to us by Zorzi, as bowling balls were mysteriously deposited on his property in the middle of the night.)

“One morning I looked out, and there was a pile of four over there, three over in that direction, and 27 of them in my driveway!” said Szymansky. “And it has just continued since then. The last dropoff was three days ago.”

We asked Szymansky if he had heard about the Bowling Ball House of Kendall Park, but he said he didn’t recall anyone ever telling him about it. We asked if the rocking horses were dropoffs also, but he said no, they were all bought at garage sales and flea markets. A strange similarity, we thought.

“I have a little over 300 bowling balls on the property. I used to have about 400, but a lot of them split or got cracked, so I’m slowly replacing them. I like them. If I see one at a garage sale, I pick it up. If I see a rocking horse in the trash, I’ll take that also.”

Szymansky has no plans to stop his bowling ball fetish. We asked him if he plans on making a bowling ball tombstone when his time comes and he gave us a surprising reply.

“I bought a grave around the corner here at the cemetery," he said. "I had the stone made up and had them put a bowling ball on it. If you take a ride through you can see my stone with a bowling ball.”

Szymansky also tells us he has no connection to bowling as a sport.

“Why do bowling balls have three holes and I have five fingers?” he asked.

Since more and more bowling balls keep showing up on Szymansky’s property, we asked him if the neighbors gets more angry about Szymansky’s mounting collection of the spheres.

“No. We’re fine now. They’re both dead.”

The preceding article is an excerpt from Weird NJ magazine, “Your Travel Guide to New Jersey’s Local Legends and Best Kept Secrets,” which is available on newsstands throughout the state and on the web at www.WeirdNJ.com.

85-year-old man and mystery jogger help save family from house fire

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. (WABC) – A father is thanking two heroes for waking up his family when their house was on fire.A New Jersey fire chief is also praising the 85-year-old neighbor and unknown passerby.Kendall Park resident Santo Livio said he discovered the fire when he noticed a puff of smoke over one of the neighboring houses.Before first responders arrived at the home, Livio said he saw a woman walking by.“We both stopped, and she looks, and I look,” he said. “I said, ‘Is that a...

SOUTH BRUNSWICK, N.J. (WABC) – A father is thanking two heroes for waking up his family when their house was on fire.

A New Jersey fire chief is also praising the 85-year-old neighbor and unknown passerby.

Kendall Park resident Santo Livio said he discovered the fire when he noticed a puff of smoke over one of the neighboring houses.

Before first responders arrived at the home, Livio said he saw a woman walking by.

“We both stopped, and she looks, and I look,” he said. “I said, ‘Is that a fire coming out of that house?’ She says, ‘It’s smoke,’ but she says, ‘It’s got to be a fire.’”

The smoke was coming from the home’s garage. Inside, a father and his four children were asleep, oblivious to the danger.

The mother, who works overnight, was not there.

Kendall Park Fire Chief Chris Perez said the smoke had not yet made it to the house, but was pouring out of the garage where it started.

Livio and the mystery walker jumped into action.

“She starts to run to the door and starts banging,” Livio said. “I run here, and I start hitting on the side of the house, the window, I said, ‘I’m going to go back and call 911. Police and fire engines start coming. At that point … the smoke turned to be a blaze.”

Fortunately, the homeowner and his children got out safely.

Perez said the home had smoke detectors, but they were not working.

The fire was eventually put out through the efforts of crews from three fire departments.

The fire marshal is investigating the cause.

The father, who did not want to be interviewed on camera, said his family is safe, and he is grateful for the first responders as well as Livio and the unknown woman who banged on his door.

“Well, I was happy to do that only in the sense that we are neighbors,” Livio said. “You know, we all say ‘hello’ to each other, good morning. I wish everybody would do that, honestly.”

Police said 50 firefighters responded to the blaze.

The mystery woman slipped away unnoticed in all the commotion.

He's big. He's bold. And he's N.J.'s own giant Buddha

FRANKLIN — There's a big Buddha on my way home from work.Perhaps you've caught a glimpse? Just off Route 27, between Kendall Park and Kingston. It's sitting there, in a backyard at the end of a driveway. Easy to miss if you're looking away.And by big, I mean huge. From top to bottom, he's 30 feet of bright white Buddha, sitting on a pink lotus.To get up close, you have to park behind The Venerable Hungampola Sirirathana Nayaka Thera'...

FRANKLIN — There's a big Buddha on my way home from work.

Perhaps you've caught a glimpse? Just off Route 27, between Kendall Park and Kingston. It's sitting there, in a backyard at the end of a driveway. Easy to miss if you're looking away.

And by big, I mean huge. From top to bottom, he's 30 feet of bright white Buddha, sitting on a pink lotus.

To get up close, you have to park behind The Venerable Hungampola Sirirathana Nayaka Thera's house and visit his meditation center. And that's exactly what I did once my curiosity got the best of me. But first, the back story.

I moved recently and have been trying different routes to get home from work. On one of my "new route" nights, I was struck by a bright light illuminating the woods as I headed south.

My jaw dropped when I saw the glowing Buddha. The last time I had seen one so large was during my study abroad in Tokyo.

Soon, I was asking friends and co-workers if they knew about it. I didn't get much help, but I had to know the rest of the story.

A few days later, on a Friday, I made my way back to Buddha.

After turning off Route 27, the first thing I noticed were the signs outside the house for the New Jersey Buddhist Vihara Meditation Center. I knocked on the door and Sirirathana opened promptly.

"When I moved here, it was just a tiny house -- just a little house and people would come and share dharma in front of this little statue," Sirirathana said, as we headed toward the back of his house. His words were translated from Sinhalese by Bhante Maithree, a monk visiting from Virginia.

Sirirathana brought us to the center's meditation room. It was filled with fresh flowers. Lanterns hung from the ceiling. He pointed to a gold Buddha in the corner. This was the statue he had when he bought the house and its 10 acres of land in 2002 to fulfill the religious, cultural and social needs of local Sri Lankan families.

But three years after opening his doors, he realized he needed more than a meditation room and the little golden Buddha.

"I wasn't happy to restrict this peaceful teaching to this small place, so I widened it and opened it up to the world," Sirirathana said. "Normally, you see buildings, building, buildings, but it's quite different to see Buddha."

And not just any Buddha.

It took two years, with six months of actual construction, before the cement, brick and steel Buddha with bright blue eyes was completed in 2009.

As we sat inside the meditation room, I glanced at the original golden Buddha. There was simply no comparison.

Sirirathana said his super-sized Buddha has created a real life "Field of Dreams" scenario - he built it and people came. Hundreds of them.

In just a few years, he said, the center has gone from serving 70 Sri Lankan families to over 300 families of all nationalities.

Many newcomers - like myself - had spotted big Buddha driving along Route 27 and were mesmerized by its grandeur.

"They sit in front of the Buddha statue and they start imitating what the Buddha is doing. They sit how the Buddha is sitting and they start meditating," said Sirirathana's friend Bante Maithree.

Maithree says the bigger the Buddha the bigger the inspiration. So this Buddha, which is possibly one of the biggest in North America, packs a lot of inspiration.

Often times, the monks said, newbies to the center will do something interesting, something that gives them away as a visitor just discovering Buddhism, the world's fourth-largest religion.

On snowy days for instance, Sirirathana said he chuckles as he watches guests cover the snow with blankets to meditate, unaware they can come inside and sit in front of the smaller golden statue in the meditation room.

No matter how they appreciate the Buddha, it all puts a smile on his face.

"I can't explain it. It's that much happiness," Sirirathana said. "I feel so happy because they are enjoying happiness. That's why I'm happy."

Sirirathana said he has had as many as 150 people on the patio at a single time. His guests have come from all over the world. A 92-year-old man visiting from India was among recent visitors.

Using donations he has received over the years, Sirirathana broke ground in 2013 on a new $2 million center in the woods behind the Buddha.

The center will have a library, rooms for meditation and community gatherings, and will be surrounded by meditation trails and gardens.

I was running out of questions, but Sirirathana suggested I come back on a Friday night to meet his neighbors Carol and George, "American people," as he called them, grinning from ear to ear. He clearly had a lot of pride in what he was about to say next.

"They are now Buddhist! When I told them of my idea to build the Buddha, they were really supportive. They removed their fences!"

When I returned, Buddha seemed even more grand at night, the light bouncing off everything around him. After I was introduced to Carol, she went right to the big Buddha and lit a candle.

The statue, she said, has changed her life.

"Meditation has really made a difference in terms of mindfulness, living in the moment, taking advantage of what's here," said Carol as we sat down. She whispered so as not to disturb the meditation underway.

About 10 people were in attendance for an hour-long session that starts with meditation and ends with a discussion of Buddhist text. The evening ends with coffee, tea, desserts and more discussion.

As they talked, Sirirathana stood to the side happily observing. Seeing him, I couldn't help but ask if he was destined to build the Buddha. Was all of this meant to be?

His answer surprised me.

He pointed to a grand Dawn Redwood tree in the front yard. He has been told it was one of the first to be planted by Chinese Buddhist monks in the 1940s. He never made a connection back to the question I had asked, he simply said the tree was there.

"Do you believe in fate?" I asked.

"No, just coincidence," he said, in one of the few times he spoke directly to me in English. "And this is a good one. It feels good."

Adya Beasley may be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @adyabeasley. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

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Gutsy Gourmet: The berry unusual can be found at Kendall Park backyard nursery

Michael Brown holds a pair of Mara des Bois strawberries grown at Pitspone Farm, a small farm in Kendall Park, NJ specializing in unusual berries.(Alex Remnick/The Star-Ledger)I pulled up to the address I had scribbled down and thought I had made a mistake. This typical suburban house in Kendall Park couldn’t possibly be the location for Pitspone Farm, a specialist in berries and small fruit plants. Just then a lanky, bespectacled man clad in overalls strode across the lawn to introduce himself.Mike Brown ...

Michael Brown holds a pair of Mara des Bois strawberries grown at Pitspone Farm, a small farm in Kendall Park, NJ specializing in unusual berries.

(Alex Remnick/The Star-Ledger)

I pulled up to the address I had scribbled down and thought I had made a mistake. This typical suburban house in Kendall Park couldn’t possibly be the location for Pitspone Farm, a specialist in berries and small fruit plants. Just then a lanky, bespectacled man clad in overalls strode across the lawn to introduce himself.

Mike Brown had been described to me as a gentleman farmer. After unlatching the gate to enter into his backyard farm, Brown certainly proved he is a gentleman and offered me a cup of Turkish coffee in a delicate blue and white demitasse cup. But he is no gentleman farmer.

"I am out here every day at 5:15 a.m. with my cup of coffee checking on things before I go to work," he says. "A gentleman farmer oversees things. I am out here doing it all myself."

Today he has a thriving backyard nursery, selling his hard-to-find fruits to top New Jersey restaurants and his plants to home gardeners with a taste for the unusual, but as many gardening ventures do, it started small.

When Brown purchased the house, the backyard was a basic lawn. In 2007, he added some fig trees because his wife loves them and he thought he could sell the fruit. Then came heirloom tomatoes and herbs. Next he decided to grow something nobody was growing.

"I explore higher-end and less common fruits. I began expanding and fine tuning. I don’t think I’ve mown grass back here in two years," Brown tells me, with more than a hint of pride in his voice. "I promised my wife from the front it would look like a normal house. In the back I am almost maxed out."

Almost every available inch behind the tall fence is full of edible delights. Pots of alpine strawberries line up neatly near the gate and on the deck. The small, elongated fruit with a bumpy surface smells as sweet as cotton candy and tastes like Pop-Tarts, according to Brown. I quickly dubbed them "crackberries" after tasting one.

"Sometimes I do feel like a drug dealer because I sell them by the ounce instead of the pound," he says sheepishly, "because the yield is low and they take me so long to harvest."

These berries are so delicious it is understandable that Princeton's highly-acclaimed Elements is so addicted the restaurant claimed Brown's entire supply this summer. (Fortunately, he sells plants to interested home gardeners.)

Further along the narrow path we stop near Mara des Bois strawberries. Highly flavorful and fragrant, this French everbearing gourmet strawberry has a nice texture and is a chef favorite.

Brown, a school librarian, uses his research abilities in the field. "I want to help people and chefs be able to determine what tastes best and grows best in New Jersey," he says, as he stops in front of a row of 15-foot tall European elderflower trees. Each umbrel of fragrant white flowers eventually turns into a bunch of purple berries that may be made into jam, juice or wine. The berries must be cooked before consuming. Liqueur and tea can be made from the flowers. The lacy blossoms can also be dipped in a light tempura style batter and fried.

The striking chartreuse hue of gooseberries will lure you close to the bush, but beware of its treacherous thorns. Careful extraction of the fruit rewards one with a slightly tart globe the size of a seedless grape. In England it is a favorite in summer desserts. In Nigel Slater's cookbook "Ripe: A Cook in the Orchard" (Ten Speed Press, $40), the recipes for honey polenta cake with elderflower and gooseberries and for gooseberry, apple, and elderflower pie beg for me to bring home buckets of berries to merrily meld with sugar into jammy perfection. The berries freeze well, so stock up.

The currant, another British favorite, can be found here, too. Long trusses of red or white berries invite you to idle a moment and have a sample. They make a gorgeous claret jelly.

More exotic specimens such as the goumi berry, which looks like an oblong cherry and tastes a bit like a plum, and the jujube tree dot his landscape. These fruits are popular in Asia. Brown hopes to be able to tap into that market locally.

The native serviceberry has captured Brown’s attention this season. He is assessing seven varieties for taste and yields. The berries taste similar to blueberries and make wonderful pies and jams.

Aronia, or black chokeberry, intrigues Brown because it is an antioxidant powerhouse and birds don’t care for the fruit. They make an excellent juice and substitute for blueberries in baking. The jostaberry, a thornless cross between black currant and gooseberry, is also on his one-to-watch list.

Brown’s living laboratory is full of surprises. "Something is just devastating my Kokuso mulberries," he laments as he sips his coffee and speculates that a groundhog is the culprit. "But I saw a fox for the first time the other day." A few minutes later we stop to watch a rabbit hustle between rows of rugosa roses that are grown for their enormous hips, popular for teas and syrups.

"I am making a transition to an edible nursery. Some nurseries have one type of gooseberry. That is like saying I grow apples and not being specific. I'm trying to be a source of more obscure plants and be able to tell people how to grow them in New Jersey." (You can order plants through his website.

Ironically, Brown feverishly spends his summer growing his fruit and making daily deliveries to his clients but does not often cook them.

"I have to sell them," he says ruefully. "I grow kale and tomatoes to eat but I don’t have a big enough supply of berries to eat them much. But I will walk around the garden while I work and I might munch."

I hope he leaves some crackberries for the rest of us.

Rachel Weston is the chef at A Better World Café in Highland Park. "The Gutsy Gourmet" appears monthly. You can reach her at [email protected] or The Star-Ledger, Savor/Today, 1 Star-Ledger Plaza, Newark, N.J., 07102. Twitter: @roxydynamite

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