How to Increase Terpenes, Aroma and Flavor in Your Plants

What is a Terpene?

Terpenes (and terpenoids) are the world’s largest group of naturally occurring plant compounds. They’re everywhere—and they’re the major components of essential oils, delivering the unique aromas and flavors we smell and taste every day.

Common terpene-rich plants include tea, thyme, lavender, mint, hemp, Spanish sage, and citrus fruits (lemon, orange, mandarin). Terpenes are widely used in naturopathic and conventional products alike.

In nature, terpenes help plants deter pests and pathogens while attracting beneficial organisms that aid pollination and seed dispersal.

Modern processing allows extraction and isolation of terpenes for use in shampoos, body oils, perfumes, medicines, and foods.

Terpene vs. Terpenoid: These terms aren’t interchangeable, and both appear in our A–Z glossary of hydroponics terminology. “Terpene” refers to compounds in live or freshly harvested plant tissue; as the plant dries and compounds oxidize, many terpenes convert to “terpenoids.”

5 Ways To Increase Terpenes Organically in Flower

It’s not hard to raise terpene production when you focus on genetics, light, UV, finishing environment, and targeted nutrition.

1. Select genetics (cultivar/strain) by terpene profile

Plants vary widely. Match strains to your terpene goals. For example, if you want support around inflammation, look for cultivars expressing myrcene and limonene. Use the terpene list below to cross-reference targets.

Independent lab menus and cultivar databases publish measured terpene percentages by batch, and the quick-reference table further down maps each terpene to the cultivars it most often appears in.

2. Ensure strong light levels (PPFD)

Light drives photosynthesis and essential oil biosynthesis. Use a PAR meter that reads PPFD (a.k.a. µmol·m⁻²·s⁻¹). Aim for ~500 PPFD minimum in veg and ~900 PPFD minimum in flower. Below those baselines, plants lack the energy to maximize oil and terpene output.

This is the best-evidenced method on the list. Llewellyn and colleagues tested 600 to 1,000 PPFD on indoor medicinal flower and found inflorescence dry weight 1.6 times higher at the top of that range than the bottom, increasing proportionally with intensity.

3. Use supplemental UV lights

Low, controlled UV can nudge plants to produce more resins and oils as a protective response. Apply UV thoughtfully (follow fixture guidance) to avoid stress while eliciting the desired phytochemical boost.

Worth saying plainly: the controlled evidence does not support this one. The same 2022 study tested UVA and UVA+UVB alongside its light-intensity treatments and found no effect on inflorescence cannabinoid concentration and no effect on terpene content in flowering tissue, concluding there were no commercially relevant benefits to adding UV to indoor medicinal flower production. An earlier trial reached the same conclusion for short-wavelength UVB. Plenty of growers still run UV and report gains, so we have left the method in — but treat it as unproven rather than established, and do not let it displace canopy light in your budget. Plenty of LED grow lights now offer UV as an add-on if you want to test it yourself, including Gavita, Iluminar, Growers Choice, HLG and California Lightworks.

4. Drop temperatures in the last week of flower

Many growers reduce canopy temps by ~5–10 °F during the final week. The cool finish may signal “season’s end,” potentially nudging essential oil output. Results vary by cultivar and room, so consider a side-by-side if you can.

5. Use terpene-enhancing nutrients and additives

Once your environment is dialed, targeted additives can help raise terpene intensity. The three below are the ones we get asked about most, and they are compared side by side further down.

#1 Best Terpene Enhancing Nutrient Additive: FlaVUH by Ventana Plant Science

FlaVUH by Ventana Plant Science uses a proprietary polyaspartic acid polymer (reverse engineered from mollusk shells) to enhance nutrient uptake and reduce salt buildup.

The manufacturer publishes two trials behind it. In a side-by-side at Pleasantrees, a commercial multi-state operator, terpene content rose from 1.1% to 2.4% — the 118% increase this article has cited for years. Separately, a Canadian government-licensed research facility recorded a 14% yield increase over control in 2022. Both are manufacturer-published results rather than independent peer-reviewed work, and downloadable PDFs of each are linked on the product page.

Guaranteed analysis is 4-0-4, derived from soy protein hydrolysate and potassium hydroxide, at a general rate of 3 mL per gallon. It is formulated to complement any commercial base line rather than replace one.

Ventana Plant Science (VPS) FlaVUH supports plant nutrient assimilation and phytochemical production. The VUH of FlaVUH stands for Volatile Unsaturated Hydrocarbons, otherwise known as terpenes—the primary aromatic and secondary compounds of medicinal plants. VPS FlaVUH incorporates a proprietary, biodegradable nutrient-enhancing amino acid polymer that promotes nutrient uptake while decreasing salt buildup.

#2 Best Terpene Enhancing Nutrient Additive: Terpinator by Rhizoflora

Terpinator is a long-standing terpene enhancer developed through grower trials to increase terpene concentration for more taste and aroma—across many plant types.

It contains no PGRs or heavy metals, is fully water-soluble, and works in both soil and hydroponic systems alongside an existing nutrient line. The stated rate is 15–30 mL per gallon through the whole flowering cycle including flush, or 5–10 mL per gallon in veg. It holds a neutral pH and will not move your solution more than 300 PPM at maximum strength.

The idea behind it is worth understanding: rather than adding aroma, it supplies the precursors the plant uses to build its own terpenes, so the cultivar’s existing profile comes through more strongly instead of being masked.

#3 Best Terpene Enhancing Nutrient Additive: Silver Bullet by Key To Life

Silver Bullet takes a completely different route to the same goal: sulfur.

It is 97.86% free sulfur with a 2.14% enzymatic ionic wetting agent that helps it self-mix and spread evenly across plant tissue, at an average particle size of around 3 microns. Sulfur sits directly upstream of terpene synthesis in the plant, and Silver Bullet also supports nitrogen uptake and the absorption of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen.

Use it as a foliar spray through veg and as a root drench in flower, starting at 2–4 grams (half a teaspoon to a teaspoon) per gallon and increasing by 1 g per application to a maximum of 10 g per gallon. One foliar or drench per week is the manufacturer’s suggestion. It stays viable in an un-agitated reservoir for one to two weeks and longer if aerated.

Terpene Boosters Compared Side by Side

The three additives above work in genuinely different ways, and two more products get raised often enough to belong in the same table. Here is everything side by side.

Read the table as three categories rather than a ranking. FlaVUH and Terpinator are the two aimed squarely at terpene production — one by improving nutrient availability, the other by supplying precursors. Silver Bullet is a sulfur input, which is a different mechanism and a different application method. Tasty Terpenes and Bud Candy are biostimulant and carbohydrate supplements respectively; both are associated with aroma, neither is a terpene precursor product.

None of them substitutes for genetics or light. If your canopy is sitting at 500 PPFD in flower, fixing that will do more than any bottle in this table.

List of Terpenes and Their Effects

Thirty-three medicinal flower terpenes listed A–Z, each with its aroma, its reported effects, its boiling point and the cultivars it commonly appears in.

Terpene quick-reference table

All 33 terpenes listed A–Z with the complete aroma description, boiling point in Celsius and Fahrenheit, and every cultivar listed. The cards below repeat this alongside the reported effects. Full profiles follow underneath.

How to Keep the Terpenes You Grew Through Drying and Curing

Everything above is about making medicinal flower terpenes. This section is about not losing them, which is where most of the aroma in a room actually disappears.

Look at the boiling points in the table above and the problem states itself. Ocimene comes off at roughly 66 °C / 151 °F. Farnesene sits at 124–125 °C / 255–257 °F. Humulene is 106–107 °C / 223–225 °F. Those are not distant numbers — a drying room that runs warm, or a dry that finishes too fast, works through the lightest and most volatile compounds first. The ones you lose earliest are frequently the ones that made the cultivar smell distinctive.

There is a second mechanism at work too, and it is the reason the terminology in the first section matters. As tissue dries and compounds oxidise, terpenes convert to terpenoids. Drying does not simply reduce aroma — it changes it. A slow, cool dry gives that conversion time to happen gradually rather than driving off the volatile fraction all at once.

What that means in the room

Growers who prioritise aroma generally run a longer, cooler dry than one optimised purely for throughput, keep the room dark, and avoid moving large volumes of air directly across the flower. Then they cure in sealed containers with humidity control so moisture equalises slowly out of the stem and through the tissue.

We would rather point you at the physics than invent a number. The specific temperature and humidity targets that suit your room depend on your cultivar, your load and your equipment, and published trials on hemp and medicinal flower drying methods show the retention differences between drying approaches are large enough to be worth testing rather than guessing.

Harvest timing

Medicinal flower terpene content is not static through the final weeks, and neither is the trichome head that holds it. Growers checking trichomes for ripeness are reading a cannabinoid signal, not a terpene one — the two do not necessarily peak on the same day. If aroma is your priority, a side-by-side across a few days of harvest window will tell you more about your specific cultivar than any general rule.

Terpene Questions Growers Actually Ask

The questions that come through the counter and the comments, answered as directly as the evidence allows.

What raises terpenes fastest in flower?

Light intensity, because it is the one input with a measured, proportional relationship to what the plant produces. In a 2022 Frontiers in Plant Science trial, inflorescence dry weight was 1.6 times higher at 1,000 PPFD than at 600 PPFD, and the response was linear across that range. Get canopy PPFD right before spending money on an additive.

Does UV light actually increase terpenes?

The controlled evidence says no, or at least not reliably. Llewellyn et al. tested UVA and UVA+UVB on indoor medicinal flower in 2022 and found no treatment effect on inflorescence cannabinoid concentration and no effect on terpene content in flowering tissue, concluding there were no commercially relevant benefits. Growers still report anecdotal gains, and the article keeps UV as a method for that reason — but it is fair to call it unproven rather than established.

At what temperature do terpenes evaporate?

It varies enormously by compound. Ocimene comes off around 66 °C / 151 °F, while guaiol holds until roughly 288 °C / 550 °F. That spread is why a low, slow dry preserves an aroma that a hot dry strips out, and it is why the quick-reference table above lists both scales.

Do terpene boosters actually work?

The evidence is thinner than the marketing. The strongest published figure on this page comes from the FlaVUH manufacturer: a side-by-side at Pleasantrees, a multi-state commercial operator, in which terpene content rose from 1.1% to 2.4%. That is a manufacturer-published commercial trial, not independent peer-reviewed work, and it should be read that way. No additive compensates for weak genetics or a dim canopy.

Which terpene makes medicinal flower smell like citrus?

Limonene, which is often the second most abundant terpene in the plant and also occurs in citrus rinds, rosemary and juniper. It is the fresh lemon and orange-rind note, with a bitter citrus edge on the palate.

Which terpene is responsible for sedative effects?

Myrcene is the one most often named. It is frequently the most abundant terpene in hemp, and concentrations above roughly 0.5% are commonly described as leaning sedative. It also occurs in hops, mango, bay leaf and lemongrass.

What is the difference between a terpene and a terpenoid?

Terpene refers to the compound as it exists in live or freshly harvested plant tissue. As the plant dries and those compounds oxidise, many convert to terpenoids. The two words are not interchangeable, which is why drying method changes aroma rather than merely reducing it.

Does dropping temperature in the last week of flower help?

Many growers reduce canopy temperature by about 5–10 °F for the final week on the theory that a cool finish signals season's end. Results vary by cultivar and by room, and we are not aware of a controlled trial that settles it. If you have the space, run it as a side-by-side rather than across the whole room.

Can you add terpenes back after harvest?

You can, and it is a different thing from growing them. Reintroduced terpenes are a post-harvest additive rather than an expression of the cultivar's own chemistry, and this article is about the second thing — getting the plant to make more of its own.

Do terpene additives change the strain's character?

They should not. Products like Terpinator are formulated to give the plant the building blocks to express its existing profile more fully rather than to overlay a new aroma. If an additive makes every cultivar in the room smell the same, that is a flag, not a feature.

If your question is not here, call us or leave it in the comments — the ones that come up more than twice tend to end up in this section.

Take care,
The GrowersHouse Grow Team