Constituent · Sesquiterpene hydrocarbon
δ-cadinene
δ-cadinene is a sesquiterpene hydrocarbon — a heavier, woody or spicy base-note compound that lingers longer than the light terpenes. Across our dataset it was measured in 53 oils (477 samples), concentrating most in Cedarwood, Manuka, Basil.
Essential oils richest in δ-cadinene
Measured relative composition (GC peak-area %) pooled across published GC-MS samples — median, typical range (middle 50%) and the maximum seen.
| Oil | Median | Typical range | Max | Samples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cedarwood | 10.15% | 0.55%–17.95% | 21.4% | 8 |
| Manuka | 4.28% | 4.09%–5.34% | 6.4% | 3 |
| Basil | 4.12% | 0.5%–7.69% | 11.7% | 49 |
| Pine | 3.3% | 2.9%–3.7% | 4.1% | 2 |
| Copaiba | 2.5% | 2.14%–2.93% | 3.88% | 15 |
| Geranium | 2.32% | 1.06%–3.58% | 6.22% | 26 |
| Juniper | 2% | 1.51%–2.4% | 10.6% | 27 |
| Clary sage | 1.2% | 1.1%–1.3% | 1.4% | 2 |
| Helichrysum | 1.19% | 1.07%–1.65% | 4.45% | 17 |
| Wormwood | 1.07% | 0.64%–1.51% | 1.94% | 2 |
| Citronella | 1.05% | 0.3%–2.03% | 12.25% | 9 |
| Yarrow | 1.04% | 0.77%–1.29% | 1.68% | 16 |
| Ylang ylang | 0.96% | 0.7%–1.33% | 6% | 18 |
| Goldenrod | 0.95% | 0.38%–1.53% | 1.6% | 4 |
| Melissa | 0.9% | 0.86%–1.14% | 1.44% | 15 |
| Oregano | 0.65% | 0.5%–1.06% | 1.7% | 10 |
| Carrot seed | 0.57% | 0.57%–0.57% | 0.57% | 1 |
| Lime | 0.53% | 0.35%–0.71% | 0.89% | 2 |
| Mountain savory | 0.53% | 0.23%–0.99% | 2.46% | 38 |
| Rosemary | 0.52% | 0.24%–0.88% | 3.55% | 31 |
Oils in our library are linked above — open any profile for its full composition, safety panel and the research behind it.
Related constituents
Other sesquiterpene hydrocarbon compounds across the oils.
Figures are GC peak-area percentages pooled across published GC-MS samples, not concentrations, and describe chemistry — not health effects. How this is built →