My Honest Review of Garden of Zen (Dana Aldum)

I’ve been doing business with Dana Aldum from Garden of Zen for about three years. While her trees are generally good, the delivery process is often delayed and surrounded by unnecessary drama.

In April this year, I placed an order. After about a month of silence, Dana claimed her accounts were hacked and she had lost all her data. As any customer would be, I was frustrated. Months went by before I managed to get her new number from her Facebook group.

I requested a full refund, which she initially agreed to. Later, she asked if she could rather send me a tree of similar value, and I agreed—hoping to resolve the matter and move on. In the week of July 7th, she mentioned receiving cherry blossom trees, valued slightly higher. She invoiced me on July 12th, and I paid the difference along with shipping.

She was supposed to ship the tree on the 14th. Instead, she told me she had family issues and needed space. I tried to remain patient, even though similar delays have happened in the past.

By the week of July 21st, I had still received no update and my messages went unanswered. I reached out again through her Facebook group, where she had recently posted that she was “back to business.” I asked her to please respond to my WhatsApp messages, noting how long I’d been waiting. I also mentioned that I would be leaving a review in the SA Bonsai Community if I didn’t receive feedback.

In response, she suspended my Facebook group account and deleted all my posts. Today, she fully blocked me from the group entirely. She also messaged me, saying I was dragging her name through the mud. She then created a PUDO locker delivery, but as of now, the tracking information still says “waiting for deposit”—meaning the tree was never dropped off.

She later accused me of trying to make her look like a ********, which is not my intention at all. I just want the tree I paid for, or proper communication.

As a customer, I believe it’s fair to speak up when service is this poor. The lack of professionalism and ongoing excuses are unacceptable. It’s disappointing that she is portraying herself as the victim while I’m the one left waiting, without answers.

I hope this review encourages a proper response and resolution. I’ve had many smooth transactions in the SA Bonsai community, but this experience has taught me to be much more cautious. What may seem like a small matter to some still matters deeply to me.