Treetoscope

Asking trees what they need

May 11, 2025

What if your trees could tell you when they’re thirsty?

This week’s company built the tech to make that happen.

They’ve developed sap flow sensors that track water uptake straight from the trunk.

→ Real-time, plant-level data
→ Smarter irrigation decisions
→ Higher yields with less water

In a world of droughts and rising costs, this might be the most important conversation farmers aren’t having.

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THE BIG PICTURE

Climate change, population growth, and tighter regulations are putting water use under a microscope.

Every drop counts. And governments are watching.

That’s why the pressure is on to measure, track, and optimize water use like never before.

This is where Treetoscope fits in.

Their real-time sap flow sensors tell farmers exactly how much water each tree actually uses — not how much it should need, based on models or weather guesses.

It’s a direct line into the tree’s water needs, cutting waste and improving yields.

The shift

Environmental sensors (soil, water, air) are on track to almost double by 2028. From $1.8 billion in 2023 to $3 billion by 2028. (Source)
The precision irrigation market is projected to expand from $4.18 billion in 2024 to $6.29 billion by 2029. (Source)

But the tech isn’t easy.

Many sensors break down in real conditions. Others are a pain to integrate.

And convincing a farmer to invest in new systems without clear ROI? That’s a tall order.

Treetoscope tackles this head-on:

Their tech goes in situ, right into the tree, for hyper-accurate data.
A built-in water balance algorithm handles messy variables like placement and variability.
The system plays nice with farm management platforms, cutting friction on adoption.

Why it matters now

Sustainability mandates aren’t coming, they’re here. And investors are eyeing precision ag as the next climate-tech gold rush.

The company sits at the intersection of three major trends:

Real-time ag data
Water regulation
Climate-resilient farming

THE ESSENCE

Treetoscope doesn’t guess how much water a tree needs, it asks the tree directly.

Its patented sap flow sensor measures the actual water uptake from inside the tree trunk.

Unlike soil moisture sensors or weather-based estimations, this method captures the real-time demand of the plant, how thirsty it is, and when.

The hardware is deceptively simple: a single-probe heat sensor that takes two minutes to install and doesn’t need any specialized tools.

Once in place, it measures how heat dissipates in the wood to estimate sap velocity, which correlates with how much water the tree is drinking.

That data gets fed into a cloud-based platform, where AI takes over.

It blends the sap flow readings with external inputs—satellite images, hyperlocal weather data (from IBM and Microsoft), and even soil moisture levels—to produce live irrigation recommendations, water stress alerts, and yield forecasts.

Farmers get all this via a mobile or web interface, with no IT setup or data science degree required.

The problems they’re solving

No more indirect guessing. Unlike soil or canopy sensors, Treetoscope measures the actual water consumed by the plant, not a proxy.
Real-time recommendations. The system adjusts irrigation plans hourly, adapting to changing conditions like heatwaves or unexpected rain.
Scalable and farmer-friendly. It’s affordable, modular, and simple to install, even on large farms.
Better resource use. Reduces water usage by 20–30%, while increasing crop yields by 5–15%.

The products

Treetoscope Sap Flow Sensor

Direct, plant-based measurement of water uptake
DIY installation, no professional tools needed
Robust data accuracy across variable tree species

Treetoscope SaaS Platform

Integrates sap flow with satellite, soil, and weather data
Delivers actionable irrigation plans and stress alerts
Forecasts harvest windows and water needs by plot
Requires no IT infrastructure, just a phone or laptop

What makes them unique?

Direct from the source. No proxies. Just real-time water data straight from the plant.
Highly defensible. Proprietary algorithms, patented sensor tech, and deep integration with global players like Netafim and IBM.
Category creator. They’re not improving traditional irrigation, they’re replacing it with a smarter, tree-first approach.
Built for scale. With low manufacturing costs and DIY install, it’s ready for farms of any size, in any geography.

THE BUSINESS

Industry: Precision irrigation
Headquarters: Tel Aviv, Israel
Year founded: 2020
Total funding: $9.2M | Latest round: September 20th 2023, $7M (Crunchbase)
Investors: Stray Dog Capital, SeedIL Ventures, Champel Capital, Earth Venture Capital, YYM Ventures and others
Business model: They sells sap flow sensors and charges a SaaS subscription for irrigation analytics. It also signs profit-sharing agreements with major distributors like Netafim and Toro, enabling rapid scale and access to global markets with minimal CAC.
Traction: Global partnerships with Toro and Netafim. Award-winning tech deployed across 4 continents, backed by 30-person international team. Tripled revenue in year two.
Website: treetoscope.com
Socials: LinkedIn

Founder profile

Dotan Eshet (CEO)
Business-savvy operator with a background in entrepreneurship and research commercialization. Eshet has led Treetoscope’s growth from day one, crafting partnerships, securing funding, and driving international scale.

Ori Ahiman (CTO)
Agritech veteran with a PhD-level background in plant sciences and hands-on IoT expertise. Ahiman built Treetoscope’s core tech and leads the R&D roadmap, anchoring the company’s product with deep technical and agronomic credibility.

Want to learn more?

Treetoscope: The revolutionary solution for precision irrigation (Youtube)
2024 technology innovator leader in the Israeli irrigation management industry (PDF)

CASE SCENARIOS

This could be huge

Distribution > Direct sales
Instead of burning cash on customer acquisition, they work with irrigation giants like Netafim and Toro. If these profit-share channels scale, they unlock global markets without bloating headcount or opex.
The holy grail of irrigation: Tree-level data
Most agtech tools focus on soil, not the tree. Treetoscope measures sap flow directly.
Category ownership in a lagging industry
Water is one of agriculture’s biggest cost and constraint, yet still managed by gut feel. With a patented tech moat and early awards, They have a shot at defining (and dominating) a new category of water intelligence.

This could be a problem

Dependent on distribution gatekeepers
Their growth hinges on partners like Toro and Netafim. Relying heavily on distributors them could limit control over pricing and customer relationships.
Hardware in the wild
Sensors must stay reliable across extreme, diverse field conditions.
Behavioral adoption is slow in ag
Execution risk lies in education, trust-building, and proving ROI at scale across geographies.

STRATEGIES AND LESSONS

Try creating a category of your own. This company didn’t just tried to make better soil sensors; they rewired the irrigation model around the tree
Leverage partnerships as distribution. Instead of selling farm by farm, they scaled by embedding into existing ag networks.
Reduce friction everywhere. From 2-minute installs to zero IT setup, they removed technical barriers to adoption.