Myrcene
Near neighbours structurally, and both read green-sweet. Myrcene is the heavier, sweeter one; ocimene is lighter, more tropical, and the first of the two to leave the jar.
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Ocimene is the sweet, almost tropical note in mint, basil and parsley — and in orchids, which is the tell. It's a smell plants make to be attractive. In cannabis it reads sweet and green at once, sitting on top of a profile rather than underneath it.
About Ocimene
It runs to the energising side. Ocimene is also part of how a plant defends itself: it's released when something starts eating the leaves, as a signal that attracts the predators of that pest. Pleasant thing to learn about a smell you like.
Ocimene has the lowest boiling point in this library — 100°C / 212°F, the temperature water boils at. It is the most fragile terpene here by a clear margin. A fast dry doesn't reduce ocimene, it removes it. If you want it in the jar, every part of the harvest has to be slow and cool, and you'll still lose some.
Terpene Data
Chemical FormulaC₁₀H₁₆
Boiling Point100°C / 212°F
EffectEnergizing
AromaSweet, herbal, woody with tropical notes
Surviving the Dry
100°C
Most volatile (100°C)Most heat-tolerant (230°C)
One of the first things a warm drying room takes — dry cool and slow, or this is the note you lose.
Medical Benefits
Also Found In
- Mint
- Parsley
- Pepper
- Basil
- Orchids
High in These Strains
Commonly Confused With
Valencene
Valencene is orange — sweet, round, a little woody. Ocimene is green and tropical, with no citrus body behind it.
View terpeneLimonene
Limonene is citrus peel and nothing else. Ocimene is tropical and herbal, and it fades far faster than limonene does.
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