Ethiopia is the source of the temperate Tulsi with its spicy scent of vanilla and myrrh… and red pollen – Ocimum bisabolenum

Summary

About the temperate Tulsi ecotypes, with red pollen, listed as Ocimum tenuiflorum in the USDA seed bank, by scientists… or by Western seed companies

About the temperate Tulsi ecotypes, with red pollen, listed as Ocimum americanum in North America and Asia

A Tempered Tulsi with spicy, woody, myrrh scents… in Bisabolene mode

Bissabol, Bissa Bol and Bisabolenes

Abundance of Bisabolenes in “Sacred” Ethiopian Basils: the temperate Tulsi, with its red pollen, is of Ethiopian origin

Bisabolenes in other species of Ocimum… or botanical misidentifications?

Medicinal Properties of Ethiopian Tulsi and Bisabolenes

Resistance of Ethiopian Tulsi to Basil Blight, Peronospora belbahrii

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*Ocimum bisabolenum.* Temperate Tulsi from Ethiopia, with a spicy vanilla and myrrh fragrance… and with brick-red pollen and purple filaments. The flowers are 6/7 mm long. Photography by Xochi.

«Tulsi Tulana Nasti Ataeva Tulasi».

Tulsi is Incomparable… in the sense that she cannot be compared to anything else. Because of this attribute, she is a manifestation of the Heavenly Mother on Earth.

Addendum of September 21, 2024

Caveat. As I am in the process of writing a very long “Open Letter” to the world’s self-proclaimed Basil experts, I took the opportunity to scour the Web in search of a few other studies claiming, since November 2023 – the date of my last contribution – to analyze Ocimum tenuiflorum, Ocimum basilicum, Ocimum americanum... when it’s really the Ethiopian Tulsi, the Besobila, i.e., Ocimum bisabolenum.

And, by the way – since we are at the end of summer – the Ocimum bisabolenum plants I grew in the summer of 2022 – from seeds – are now in their third season of perennial cultivation… after surviving temperatures of -7°C on a balcony or in a corner of the garden protected from the westerlies.

Few Ocimum species have the privilege of withstanding such low temperatures! This is undoubtedly also the case for Ocimum kilimandsharicum, native to the heights of Kilimanjaro. By the way, what a coïncidence that Ocimum bisabolenum and Ocimum kilimandsharicum, as different species, partake of the same type of environment – the same elevated mountain ecosystem – respectively in Ethiopia and in Kenya? And what about this other charming coïncidence as they partake of the same red brick colour for their pollen?

In any case, today, I know of no variety, or ecotype, of the well known Basils – Ocimum basilicum, Ocimum tenuiflorum, Ocimum gratissimum and Ocimum selloi – that can withstand such cold. What about you?

On the other hand, certain ecotypes of Ocimum americanum seem to be more vigorous: such is the case of “Malawi Camphor” (Ocimum americanum var. americanum) which spent last winter on my balcony.

As I don’t have the time to insert my new discoveries into the various sections of this monograph, I am presenting them in this separate section – with my comments, which sometimes refer to previous data…

… which makes us realize that, since its original publication in August 2022, and since my communiqué of November 2023, nothing has happened that would lead us to imagine that anyone would, one starry day, look into this scandalous botanical dossier… We live in formidable times!

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About the botanical misidentification syndrome in Ethiopia. A number of Ethiopian studies published on the plants used in the composition of clarified butter refer to an Ocimum known variously as “Koserete”, “Kosorata”, “Kusaayee”, “Kessie”, and considered to be the species “Ocimum hadiense” – sometimes spelled “Ocimum hardiense”.

This is the case, for example, of the 2010 study “Plant species used in traditional smallholder dairy processing in East Shoa, Ethiopia / Espèces végétales utilisées dans la transformation traditionnelle des produits laitiers par les petits exploitants de l’est de Shoa, en Éthiopie” which mentions two Basilics, Ocimum hardiense “Kosorata” and Ocimum sanctum “Besobila”, respectively, for the manufacture and conservation of clarified butter. [31]

According to this study, the species used in the composition of Ethiopian clarified butter, in this region of eastern Shoa, Ethiopia, are – in addition to Ocimum bisabolenum “Besobila” Allium ursinum, Aframomum angustifolium, Coriandrum sativum, Curcuma longa, Eugenia caryophylla, Mentha piperita, Nigella sativa, Satujera sp.,Trachyspermum copticum, Trigonella foenum-graecum, Zingiber officinale.

In fact, there’s no such thing as “Ocimum hardiense” and it’s actually the species Coleus hadiensis – widespread throughout much of South and East Africa. This species is widely used for preserving dairy products and for cleaning the kitchen utensils needed to make and preserve these dairy products. [ 34] [ 35] [ 36] [ 37] [38]

In no way, therefore, is this an Ocimum. The problem in Ethiopia – and in so many other countries – is that PhDs in genetics, statistics, sociology, ethno-medicine, etc., etc., abound in contrast to botanists… and that’s not to mention the crucial botanical errors propagated by state seed banks, which have spread throughout the world over the decades….

And that’s not all In fact, not only has Ocimum hadiensis been reclassified in the Coleus genus, but “Koserete” is the name, in Amharic (a Chamito-Semitic language) of Lippia abyssinica sp. koseret – a plant with renowned preservation capabilities – including for refrigerated meat. [28]

This plant belongs to a completely different Family, the Verbenaceae, and has nothing to do with the Ethiopian Besobila of the Lamiaceae Family.

In the study published in November 2023 by Ethiopian researcher Sintayehu Musie Mulugeta – in partnership with Hungarian researchers Zsuzsanna Pluhar and Peter Radacsi – “Phenotypic Variations and Bioactive Constituents among Selected Ocimum Species”, one of the 15 ecotypes analyzed is, very wisely, named “Green Holy Basil from Ethiopia” – and presented as Ocimum sanctum/tenuiflorum. [1]

For the past 40 years in Europe, and north-America, this temperate Basil has been named “Holy Basil”, or “Sacred Basil”, because everybody “supposed” it was coming, very exotically from India – thus Ocimum sanctum… which is pure botanical divagation.

According to the conclusions of this study, this ecotype of Ocimum bisabolenum is characterized by an essential oil containing 19% Bisabolene (14.1% Bisabolene and 4.9% cis-α-Bisabolene); 12.1% Linalool; 10.1% Estragole; 8.3% 1,8-Cineole; 7% Eugenol – for the major components.

It is also specified that this ecotype contains less than 0.5% essential oil – which is the norm for Ocimum bisabolenum.

This ecotype has the reference number LAMIOCI55 in the Ethiopian seed bank.

This is not Ocimum sanctum/tenuiflorum, but an ecotype of Ethiopian Basil, Ocimum bisabolenum.

In fact, it is hard to misidentify, once you have grown both of them, Ocimum tenuiflorum, and the so-called temperate Sacred Basil, Ocimum bisabolenum: their “gesture” is utterly different. Moreover, Ocimum bisabolenum embalms in the garden – especially when watered – but not Ocimum tenuiflorum.

Have you seen the bees with their brick-red pollen balls foraging around in the plants of Ocimum bisabolenum? You will never seem them in Ocimum tenuiflorum… because its pollen is yellow – and so the pellets!

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The three authors of the previous study published a new study, in June 2024, “Diversity in morphology and bioactive compounds among selected Ocimum species”, which analyzed 15 Ocimum ecotypes including “Ethiopian Green Holy Basil” but, this time, including, also, an authentic Ocimum sanctum/tenuiflorum, “Purple Holy Basil” – from India. [4]

Their photograph on page 3, clearly, shows an Ocimum bisabolenum plant – under the denomination “Ethiopian Green Holy Basil”.

This ecotype of “Ethiopian Green Holy Basil”, has the reference number LAMIOCI54 in the Ethiopian seed bank. It comes from the Danish seed bank and is presented as an Ocimum sanctum, whereas in 1999, the National Herbarium of Denmark presented it as an Ocimum americanum… following, then, Alan Paton from the Kew Botanical Garden and the GRIN/USDA seed bank.

In truth, for the past 25 years all the seed banks of the world have been disseminating – as I prove it in this monograph – the botanical errors, concerning ecotypes of Ocimum, stemming from the botanists of GRIN/USDA seed-bank in USA – which, nonetheless, offer very precious seeds of diversity to whomever asks for them. And I thank them dearly for that… because without the PI 652059 ecotype from the Maldives, I would never had made the discovery of the species I named Ocimum bisabolenum – when I grew 30 accessions of Ocimum during the summer 2022, of which, 6 of the GRIN seed ressources.

May I reiterate? Today, the GRIN/USDA seed bank offers only 9 ecotypes of Ocimum tenuiflorum, 7 of which are strictly Ocimum bisabolenum – of which, the PI 652059 ecotype from the Maldive…. in front of Ethiopia in the Ocean.

You may check by yourself the pictures, on the website of the GRIN/USDA seed bank if that situation seems too ludicrous to you! Here are some links: [23] [24] [25]. I wrote to them but nobody paid attention… These are not leaves and flowers of Ocimum tenuiflorum. No way! It is Ocimum bisabolenum!

According to the conclusions of this new study, this second ecotype, of Ocimum bisabolenum, is characterized by an essential oil containing 37.8% Bisabolene (31.4% Bisabolene and 6.4% cis-α-Bisabolene); 12.1% Linalool; 24% Estragole; 22% 1,8-Cineole; 35% Eugenol – for the major components.

This is not Ocimum sanctum/tenuiflorum, but an ecotype of Ethiopian Basil, Ocimum bisabolenum.

The authentic ecotype of “Purple Holy Basil” – Ocimum sanctum/tenuiflorum from India – contains, according to this study, mainly eugenol and caryophyllene in its essential oil… as we would expect.

The average polyphenol content is 146 mg GAE/g dry matter. This ecotype has the lowest essential oil content of the 15 ecotypes at 0.3% – which is the norm for Ocimum bisabolenum. Its average productivity varied, during the two years of cultivation, between 330 grams and 430 grams per plant.

It should be noted, according to a 2011 study [19], that the cultivars “Blue Spice” and “Spice” (Ocimum bisabolenum) contained the highest levels of phenolic compounds out of 15 basil varieties (all considered to be Ocimum basilicum).

It’s worth pointing out that according to this study – and its authors didn’t highlight the following enormous difference: the weight per 1000 seeds varies by a factor of three between Ocimum tenuiflorum and Ocimum bisabolenum.

These data are accurate, as they correspond to the data presented by professional organic seed companies or by various studies on the morphological characteristics of different species in the Ocimum genus.

The ecotype of Ocimum bisabolenum, from Association Kokopelli, has a weight of 0.63 g per 1000 seeds.

Ocimum tenuiflorum/sanctum is characterized by a weight of around 0.3 g per 1000 seeds.

Ocimum americanum is characterized by a weight of 1.7 g per 1000 seeds – for example, for the “Mrs Burn” or “Lemon” cultivar – namely, Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum.

Ocimum basilicum is characterized by a weight varying from 1 g per 1000 seeds, for the “Aromatto” cultivar, to 1.9 g per 1000 seeds, for the “Thai” type ecotypes or cultivars – namely, Ocimum basilicum sp. thyrsiflorum.

Ocimum bisabolenum is characterized by a weight of 0.62 g to 0.7 g per 1000 seeds.

In conclusion:

Ocimum bisabolenum seeds are twice as heavy as Ocimum tenuiflorum seeds.

Ocimum bisabolenum seeds are twice as light as Ocimum americanum seeds.

Ocimum bisabolenum seeds are two to three times lighter than Ocimum basilicum seeds.

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Searching the Web for information on the weight per 1000 seeds of different Ocimum species, I came across a study, published in India in 2016, “A comparative study of morphological and anatomical structures of four Ocimum species in Uttarakhan. India.” [33]

The authors, Rajni Rawat, et al. analyzed 4 Ocimum species: Ocimum basilicum sp. thyrsiflorum, Ocimum tenuiflorum, Ocimum gratissimum and, finally, what they call Ocimum viride… which is, in fact, another name for Ocimum gratissimum.

And when the authors describe the flowers of their so-called Ocimum viride as mauve – whereas this flower color is non-existent in the flowers of Ocimum gratissimum – they are telling the truth, because according to the photograph in their study, this is very clearly an ecotype of Ocimum bisabolenum…

The three authors are therefore totally mistaken in their identification of the ecotype. It’s all very serious… but this botanical circus has been going on for over 25 years!

In fact, this species is all the more well-known in India as I introduced it myself over the last quarter-century by distributing plethora of organic seeds, from the Kokopelli Association, to numerous rural communities – including all the Tibetan refugee villages.

That said, it’s only a short step from Ethiopia to India, via the Maldives… and it’s likely that this species has been endemic to India for a very long time – at least, in certain regions.

According to their objective findings. The weight per 1000 seeds is around 0.5 g – which is about right for Ocimum bisabolenum. This species has a fragrance that is described as betel – no doubt to evoke its myrrh and tutti-frutti aromas.

The average foliage cover for one plant was calculated at 3844 square cm – meaning, 5 times more than the other 3 species…

… which corresponds to the generosity and abundance of the bio-mass of this Ethiopian species – which can be cut three times during the summer when the climate is favorable… in Spain, for example.

According to their meticulous explanations of the Ocimum bisabolenum stem: «The young stem is quadrangular in outline. Outermost layer is epidermis (EP) composed of tangentially elongated isodiametric cells and covered by their cuticle. Hypodermis is slightly collenchymatous (Coll). Cortex (Co) is parenchymatous with air spaces. Stele has four vascular bundles between them. Vascular bundles are collateral and open. Xylem (Xy) is without fibre tracheid with libriform fibres. Pith (M) in centre consists of lignified parenchymatous cells. Pith in the centre consists of lignified parenchymatous cells. » [33]

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In Ethiopia, in June 2024, researcher Aynalem Gebre Gossa – from the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research – published a new study on the genetic analysis of 62 Ethiopian Basil ecotypes mistakenly considered as all belonging to the species Ocimum basilicum. “Genetic diversity and population structure of Ethiopian basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) accessions using DArTseq markers.” [20]

According to the authors’ conclusions, “structural analysis uncovered the existence of two ancestral populations within the basil accessions, which was confirmed by clustering”. In other words, these 62 Ethiopian basil plants were classified in two genetically different groups… with two distinct ancestral lineages.

Why is that? Because they are in fact two different species:

Ocimum bisabolenum (“Besobila”) and Ocimum basilicum var. thyrsiflorum (“Ajuban” or “Ashkuti”).

Aynalem Gebre Gossa never replied to my letter of August 2022, in which I proved to him that, according to his study of 2023, if a large proportion of his 49 Ethiopian basil ecotypes had a considerable level of Bisabolene, it was because they were not ecotypes of Ocimum basilicum var. thyrsiflorum but, rather, of Ocimum bisabolenum. According to this researcher: β-bisabolene was the dominant compound in almost all the accessions analyzed, except in five accessions (OB033, OB036, OB013, OB048 and OB047). [5]

By the way, could a botanist, or some other astute geneticist, try to explain to me – even briefly! – why Basil with a considerable level of Bisabolene, in its essential oil, can only be found in Ethiopia?

Is the Besobila a botanical, and culinary, caprice of Mother Earth savoring her own Beauty in the mountainous highlands of Ethiopia?

By the way, did anybody know about other Peoples, somewhere on the planet, using whatever Ocimum species to preserve clarified butter (ghee) for 15 years – as they do in Ethiopia with the Besobila?

And considerable is, again, an understatement when it comes to ecotypes of Ethiopian Besobila with up to 45.79% Bisabolene (in the form of β-Bisabolene and (Z)-α-Bisabolene) according to the March 2021 Ethiopian study entitled “Chemotypic Characterization of Ocimum basilicum L. Essential Oils for Ethiopian Genotypes” [22], which analyzed the essential oil of 6 Ethiopian ecotypes of Ocimum: 3 that are clearly ecotypes of Ocimum basilicum sp. thyrsiflorum and 3 that are clearly ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum.

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The Italian study published in February 2024, “Characterization of the floral traits, pollen micromorphology and DNA barcoding of the edible flowers from three basil taxa (Lamiaceae)”, analyzed three Ocimum ecotypes – including their pollen grains: “Blue Spice”, “Cinnamon” and “Ocimum × africanum”. [2]

Their “Blue Spice” ecotype comes from the Conservatoire National des Plantes à Parfum, Medicinales et Aromatiques in Milly la-Forêt, France. I have proved, extensively, in this monograph, that “Blue Spice” – a name introduced by Richter Seeds in Canada a long time ago – is, strictly, Ocimum bisabolenum.

According to their findings. “Blue Spice” ‘s pollen has the highest diameter with hexacolpate/heptacolpate/octacolpate grains: 40% of pollen grains are octacolpate, 30% heptacolpate and 30% hexacolpate. According to light microscope micrographs, Ocimum × africanum has 6 or 8 colpus – with 87% hexacolpates and 13% octacolpates; Ocimum basilicum “Cinnamon”, 6 colpus; and “Blue Spice”, 6 to 8 colpus.

In botany and palynology, a colpus is each of the grooves in the exine of a pollen grain. Pollen grains with grooves (longitudinal germinal furrows) in the exine have colpus. An ectocolpus is a groove on the surface of a pollen grain.

What’s fascinating about this latest study is that it details, for the first time, the morphology of an ecotype, in this case “Blue Spice”, of Ocimum bisabolenum. Given its predominantly “heptacolpate” and “octacolpate” pollen nature – 70% of the grains with 7 and 8 colpus – Ocimum bisabolenum is immediately distinguishable from Ocimum basilicum, Ocimum tenuiflorum, Ocimum gratissimum, Ocimum kilimandscharicum, Ocimum filamentosum and Ocimum forsskalii… all of which have only 6 colpus – as 11 eleven studies, presented below, highlight this strict contingency.

Source: “Characterization of the floral traits, pollen micromorphology and DNA barcoding of the edible flowers from three basil taxa (Lamiaceae)”

Studies mentioning 6 colpi for Ocimum basilicum: [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18]

Studies mentioning 6 colpi pour Ocimum tenuiflorum, Ocimum americanum, Ocimum gratissimum, Ocimum kilimandscharicum, Ocimum filamentosum, Ocimum forsskalii: [11] [12] [14]

According to this Italian study and a Nigerian study [13], Ocimum americanum/africanum is characterized by 6, 7 or 8 colpi.… … whereas Alan Paton, in his 1992 study [50], considers it to be hexacolpate in nature, like all Ocimum – including Ocimum lamiifolium, Ocimum forskolei, Ocimum kenyense, etc.

Today, therefore, in addition to Ocimum bisabolenum, only Ocimum americanum is sometimes mentioned as coming out of the “hexacolpates” class with 6 colpus.

A class of medium-sized padded trichomes (single-celled stem, single-celled head) is found in “Blue Spice” but not in Ocimum basilicum “Cinnamon”. Traces of lipids are also present in the cytoplasm of some non-glandular “Blue Spice” trichomes.

According to the researchers’ conclusions. Ocimum basilicum “Cinnamon” and Ocimum × africanum show more morphological similarities to each other, but histochemical analyses suggest the separation of the three taxa.

Moreover, from a genetic mythology point of view, the authors assert that two haplotypes have been identified because “Blue Spice” differs from the other two – Ocimum basilicum “Cannelle” and Ocimum × africanum – and that “Blue Spice” is all the more distinct because Ocimum basilicum “Cannelle” and Ocimum × africanum show more morphological similarities with each other.

As a reminder. Ocimum bisabolenum has its own specific weight of DNA (2843 Mbp) and is placed, by ad hoc genetic analyses, in a clade, totally, apart. [6]

A 2013 Taiwanese study using molecular markers (random DNA amplification polymorphism) found [8] that the “Spice” and “Blue Spice” ecotypes (Ocimum bisabolenum) were strictly similar and constituted their own separate group – genetically speaking.

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The study, published in May 2024, “Distribution, local use, and bio-prospecting opportunity of Ocimum americanum L. in Northwestern part of the Amhara Region, Ethiopia” aimed to highlight traditional foods spiced with basil. [7]

The two photographs A in their study, clearly, highlight plants of Ocimum bisabolenum – Besobila – with their abundant purplish flower stalks typical of this species with brick-orange pollen.

We’re not talking about ecotypes of Ocimum americanum, but of Ethiopian Basil, Ocimum bisabolenum.

By the way, in other parts of Africa, are there any traditions of preserving clarified butter using authentic ecotypes of the species Ocimum americanum? I never heard about any. What about you?

According to the consultation carried out by the researchers among the local population – with the help of 120 selected informants – it emerged that 84% of the local population, in this Amhara region, use Besobila to prepare their clarified butter… which the researchers call, wrongly, an Ocimum americanum.

A third of those questioned used Besobila in traditional medicine, mainly to treat depression and headaches, stomachaches – and to ward off evil spirits. A third used it in inhalations and 10% in fumigations.

According to their findings: « The majority of the respondents (84%) use Ocimum americanum to prepare spiced butter, while the remaining 14% do not use use it for this purpose. This finding suggests that Ocimum americanum plays a crucial role in spiced butter production. Respondents indicated that adding Ocimum americanum to butter enhances flavor, aroma, and act as a preservative. The method and amount of Ocimum americanum added during spiced butter preparation vary based on local views, knowledge, and practices across different parts of the study area. Approximately half of the respondents (49%) use Ocimum americanum primarily for flavorings and its preservative properties…. The preservative effect of Ocimum Americanum varies from 2 to 10 years depending on knowledge and practices in the community surround the study area. Local community use Ocimum americanum for flavoring foods such as hot spice or red pepper (‘Berbere’), spiced stew (“Wot”), tea, and traditional foods made from grain flour (“Atmit”), roasted grains, and spiced butter.»

In addition to “Nitir qibe” (spiced butter), Besobila is used in this region to spice up and preserve a number of Ethiopian dishes: “Shiro” (Pea and bean flour-based stew); “Berbere” (Hot peppers); “Mitmita” (Hot pepper powder); “Awaze” (Dissolved spices); “Shiro Wet” (Spicy stew); “Misir Wet” (Lentil stew); “Silijo” (Spicy white-fleshed food); “Ater Alicha Wot” (Vegetable stew); “Dillih” (Spices dissolved in water).

“Silijo”, for example, is a dish consisting of a portion of a traditional fermented food prepared from a mixture of cooked and pulverized extracts of fava bean (Vicia faba) and safflower (Carthamus tinctorius), transformed into a semi-solid product and added to untreated black mustard powder (Brassica nigra) after cooling.

Communiqué. November 19 th, 2023

Caveat. As of November 19th 2023, I brought a plethora of new informations, to this monograph published in August 2022, concerning Ocimum bisabolenum… because I made a lot of discoveries… which are, very often, calling for new discoveries! Moreover, I pushed my-self (or one of them) to get more serious, meaning hooked, with LinkedIn, because, otherwise, it is mainly impossible to communicate with the many scientists, all over the world, who have published scientific, so-called peer reviewed, studies with authentic conclusions except for the identity of the Ocimum ecotypes they were analyzing. Why? Because they were dealing with Ocimum bisabolenum when they presumed they were working with Ocimum tenuiflorum, Ocimum basilicum, Ocimum americanum or Ocimum kilimandsharicum.

In fact, as early as October 2012, a Californian newspaper, the San Francisco Gate, revealed the Ethiopian origin of the so-called temperate Tulsi – but nobody paid any attention. [135]

Perhaps, Menkir Tamrat, himself, introduced this Ethiopian Besobila when he arrived on the West Coast in 1971…

By the way, a lot of these studies were based on botanical samples which had been, supposedly, “authenticated” by “PhD botanical experts”… which says a lot about the state of Botanical Science “in vivo” – nowadays.

Many biologists are, strictly and existentially, “in vitro”, and sometimes botanists are just as much so – in vitro.

For example: this 2017 study, Genetic diversity and chemotype selection in genus Ocimum” [183] – published by CIMAP in Lucknow, India – shows Ocimum basilicum flowers with red pollen… or Ocimum kilimandsharicum flowers with purple corollas and yellow pollen!

For example, the recent publication, July 2023, “African and Holy Basil – a review of ethnobotany, phytochemistry, and toxicity of their essential oil: Current trends and prospects for antimicrobial/anti-parasitic pharmacology”. The picture the authors propose, for Ocimum gratissimum, is one of Ocimum bisabolenum with its mauve flowers and brick-red pollen… whereas the flowers of Ocimum gratissimum are white, or yellow-green, with yellow pollen! [182]

For example, the recent 2022 publication – again from the University of Lucknow, India – “A Glance at the Phytochemical and Ethno-pharmacological Understanding of Four Ocimum Species” analyzes 4 Ocimum species including Ocimum sanctum and Ocimum tenuiflorum… which constitute a single species! [29]

Or about the state of Genetic Resources Conservation… as this botanical Ocimum chaos has been disseminated by the GRIN/USDA seed bank for the past 40 years or more – in fact, since the organic seed companies started to disseminate this wonderful, and non tropical, Sacred Tulsi prospering, with generosity, in the gardens of north America and Europe.

Today, the GRIN/USDA seed bank offers only 9 ecotypes of Ocimum tenuiflorum, 7 of which are strictly Ocimum bisabolenum.

It should be noted, moreover, that in February 1951, GRIN/USDA welcomed a “historic” ecotype (not available from seed) of Ethiopian Besobila, with the reference PI 194003, named “Beso-bla. Abosda”.

As to the confusion between Ocimum kilimandsharicum and Ocimum bisabolenum does not stem from the GRIN/USDA seed bank: it stems from the fact that most of the known ecotypes of Ocimum kilimandsharicum and most of the ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum marketed in the USA and Europe have the same pollen color – brick-red. The pollen of Ocimum bisabolenum can be white – further increasing confusion with Ocimum basilicum – while that of Ocimum kilimandsharicum has rarely been described as grey. [185]

I introduced, myself, in France, in 1994, this Sacred Tulsi which is today Ocimum bisabolenum – with the first organic seed catalogue of my, then, small seed company “Terre de Semences”.

In conclusion, a huge amount of studies, published during the last 40 years – about Ocimum tenuiflorum, Ocimum americanum, Ocimum kilimandsharicum and Ocimum basilicum – should be retracted.

Ocimum bisabolenum is the only Basil species I know of which perfumes the garden as soon as it is lightly touched or watered. In fact, when plants come into contact with water, they immediately release volatile substances with a very fragrant aroma!

Plainly! Which explains why nobody dared to answer me, last year, when I published “Ethiopia is the source of the temperate Tulsi with its spicy scent of vanilla and myrrh… and red pollen”.

Moreover, I am no PhD! I am simply a Troubadour juggling with many a rainbow ball dancing in synergy: agronomy, botany, pharmacy, medicinal plants, teaching, writing, translating, photography... and desert explorations.

I roamed all over the deserts of western USA, for so many years, in search of Beauty… and new botanical species. My personal website about Eriogonum – the third genus by the number of species in USA – is the only one, in the world, presenting 154 taxa of Eriogoneae with high definition or macroscopic photographies. My pleasure!

Thus, I shall publish, very soon, an open letter denouncing the false science that has surrounded this Ocimum bisabolenum – and its fate – since the 1970s.

Since the first publication of this monograph, I concluded my first sequence of 7 medicinal monographs involving Ocimum species – namely Ocimum americanum (link), Ocimum basilicum (link), Ocimum kilimandsharicum (link), Ocimum gratissimum (link), Ocimum tenuiflorum (link), Ocimum selloi (link) and, of course, Ocimum bisabolenum (link). In French.

In fact, I wrote close to 50 monographs in French, for the past years – since I gave up the presidency of the Association Kokopelli I founded in 1999: we present the biggest planetary offer of organic seeds with a huge diversity. (link and link for the Ocimum).

One of my latest monograph (link) is about the pernicious myth of the goitrogenicity of Brassica which, for sure, has been orchestrated by Big Pharma… as Brassica are eminently medicinal.

In view of my elucidation of that gigantic botanical – and Basilian – morass that had been slumbering for nearly half a century…

In view of my brilliant discovery of the Ethiopian origin of this “Sacred Basil”, or “Temperate Tulsi” – Ocimum bisabolenum Xochi.

In view of the writing of this very long monograph, which took me 6 weeks of hard work and investigation.

In view of my emphasis on the urgent need to retract a few dozens of so-called “scientific” studies purportedly on the species Ocimum tenuiflorum, Ocimum americanum, Ocimum basilicum or Ocimum kilimandsharicum… when in fact Ocimum bisabolenum was the subject of this riddle.

Which university in the world – hosting genuine researchers – will have the imagination to confer on me an honorary doctorate in botany, biology, pure logic, scientific journalism… or telluric common sense?

Probably none, and I would not give a barrel of whale dreck about it – in this period of global planetary cooling and Great Solar Minimum – because I am foraging for another nectar: the quintessence of the Muses and Dakinis. My Gaian common sense is the antithesis of all the pretensions, vanities and falsehoods of so-called scientific neo-Darwinism… which Lynn Margulis, the most genial biologist of the past century, and one of my heroines, considered a superstitious and pitiful religious sect – whose days were numbered.

And I mean it. I wrote a long piece of 67 pages, in French, “L’Hallucination Collective Néo-Darwiniste dans l’Oeil du Cyclone de la “Dé/Sélection Gaïenne” – au Plaisir de la Survie des Peuples” (link). With a lengthy hommage to Lynn Margulis. It is an essay highlighting Intelligent Design… but with a strict inclination towards a non-monotheist vision – meaning a pure Gaïan vision quest.

For your pleasure, you may visit and enjoy my 3 botanical websites!

“Eriogoneae” – “Gaïan Ethnobotany” – “Liberterre”

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Harvesting and drying of *Ocimum bisabolenum, Tagetes minuta* and *Tagetes tenuifolia*. Production of mother tinctures with 45° organic fruit alcohol. Photo by Xochi

Declaration of Intention with regard to the Tulsi of Ethiopia, Ocimum bisabolenum

My stated and open intention, in this new medicinal monograph, is to present this jewel of the Ocimum world, Ocimum bisabolenum, that constitutes the temperate Tulsi, originating from Ethiopia: its origins, its perfumes, its composition, its dissemination in America and Europe, its presence in the Himalayan zones, the botanical marasmus that correlates to it, its integral resistance to the basil blight and its extremely medicinal qualities as well as those of the Bisabolene, its major chemotype.

With this statement of intent, I am already exposing my discovery of the source of the temperate Tulsi – namely, Ethiopia – which took me many weeks, in 2022 and 2023, of extensive investigation and constant reworking and lengthening of my original text published on August 26 2022… due to the number of discoveries that emerged – as each discovery called for another.

This declaration of intent is thus placed as a foreword, from a didactic point of view – and from an ethic of transparency – but, in fact, it constitutes the fruit of a whole quest and a whole path… namely, of two and a half months of investigations, and of writing, daily, on the major species of Ocimum.

These assiduous investigations allowed me to get out of the nomenclature and taxonomy morass surrounding, happily, the Ocimum species from an official botanical point of view as well as from a seed company point of view – organic or conventional. In the USA, for example, I have informed some seed companies, in 2016, that the temperate Tulsi is, strictly speaking, not an Ocimum tenuiflorum… but let the winds blow – which can, at times, become extravagant when the Great Solar Minimum begins to take hold in the heart of the Earth’s atmosphere. For how many decades?

My stated intention is, also, to argue for the attribution of species status to Temperate Tulsi, native to Ethiopia – with its exotic and intense fragrance, red pollen and compact habit. Naming this Tulsi: Ocimum bisabolenum Xochi. Merci beaucoup!

If it is not, already, to pay homage to this botanical singularity that constitutes the temperate Tulsi native of Ethiopia – because it deserves it, existentially – and to pay homage to the Mother who emanated its matrix from Her Dreamtime.

Pollination vector in a temperate Tulsi flower. *Ocimum bisabolenum.* Photograph by Xochi.

If I may offer my testimony as an organic seed grower with 30 years of experience: we have never identified spontaneous crosses in the seed crops of our Temperate Tulsi ecotype, Ocimum bisabolenum, (whose source is Abundant Life Seed Foundation) – and we have never heard of such spontaneous crosses from other seed growers.

And this is probably a pity. Indeed, it would be an enormous privilege to identify a natural hybrid between an ecotype of Ocimum bisabolenum and a variety, or cultivar, of Ocimum basilicum… because it would mean that the mildew resistance of the former could be transmitted to the latter.

One of the first seed growers, of old, for Abundant Life Seed Foundation, Alan Adesse in Oregon – with 35 years of organic seed production – wrote to me, recently, to assert that he never saw, or heard of, any cross-pollination involving the so called Sacred Basil. He, himself, dropped the name when I proved, back in 2016, that it was not Ocimum tenuiflorum.

If one of the two most official attributions, since 1999 – both for the temperate Tulsi, in western countries, and for the temperate endemic Besobila of Ethiopia – has been to identify them as the species Ocimum americanum (or Ocimum africanum), this does not make sense because of the strict absence of spontaneous crosses between this temperate Tulsi and other ecotypes of Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum or Ocimum americanum sp. americanum – when cross-pollination is rampant within this species.

It would be very instructive if Ethiopian botanists could inquire about the possibilities of spontaneous crosses between Besobila and other ecotypes of Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum or Ocimum americanum sp. americanum growing in Ethiopia. A priori, it would be enough to request information from those who, in the highlands, have lived in synergy with Besobila… for thousands of years.

In conclusion. If the origin of the temperate Tulsi is clearly determined, and relatively localized – namely Ethiopia. If its morphological characteristics are particularly unique – compact habit, fast growth, very high bio-mass production, low essential oil production, high resistance to cold, perennial character, huge production of seeds; if its fragrance is embalming; if its chemotype is Bisabolene and, then, Eugenol, Eucalyptol, Estragole, α-Bergamotene and β-Caryophyllene – for the major and/or permanent components.

According to Simon’s 1999 study, “Basil: A Source of Aroma Compounds and a Popular Culinary and Ornamental Herb”, the 40 Ocimum ecotypes studied flowered from 72 days to 134 days after sowing. The temperate Tulsi ecotype “Spice” was among the first 5 ecotypes to flower at 76 days – the same time frame as the Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum ecotypes.

And, more importantly, if no testimony of seed producers has evoked spontaneous crosses with other Ocimum species for about forty years… wouldn’t it be reasonable to grant it a species status?

As early as 1981, Paulos Cornelis Maria Jansen, in his book “Spices, condiments and medicinal plants in Ethiopia, their taxonomy and agricultural significance” [49], stated that the group of Ethiopian basil plants – known as “Basobila” – were characterized by either white or orange (brick-red) anthers. This alone should have alerted botanists, for today, orange/brick-red pollen characterizes only Ocimum kilimandscharicum and Ocimum bisabolenum… at least in the main Ocimum species grown commercially or traditionally.

He also points out – and this is very valuable information – that the stamen filaments of Ethiopian “Basobila” are white or mauve. That’s exactly right: in Ocimum bisabolenum, the stamen filaments are white when the pollen is white, and mauve when the pollen is orange/brick red.

Paulos Cornelis Maria Jansen, in his book “Spices, condiments and medicinal plants in Ethiopia, their taxonomy and agricultural significance”. 1981. Page 88. About the *“Basobila”* group of Basils in Ethiopia.

Today, if I were asked to determine the species of Ocimum closest to the temperate Tulsi – among the most known worldwide – I would answer, without a doubt, Ocimum kilimandscharicum, the Tulsi of Kilimanjaro… from a sensory and intuitive point of view.

The highlands of Ethiopia, as the crow flies, are not far from Kilimanjaro – which borders Tanzania and Kenya. Both regions share the same temperate conditions of medium and high altitude.

Moreover, it should be noted that Klaudija Carovic – in her study, in Croatia, analyzing 4 ecotypes of the temperate Tulsi, Ocimum bisabolenum, instead of Ocimum tenuiflorum – has made it very clear that there were incongruities in the results of her analyses: «In the NJ tree and MP tree, two incongruences, concerning the O. basilicum “Erevanskii” (06) accession and O. kilimandscharicum (17) accession, could be noted.… On the MP tree, Ocimum kilimandscharicum was clustered together with Ocimum tenuiflorum accessions also as a sister taxon.» [21]

No incongruence: the 4 accessions – of Ocimum bisabolenum – constitute, truly, a sister taxon of Ocimum kilimandscharicum.

*Ocimum kilimandscharicum*. Photograph by Xochi.

Thus, according to the conclusions of Klaudija Carovic, the four ecotypes of temperate Tulsi she has analyzed – which are, truly, Ocimum bisabolenum – are genetically speaking, the closest to Ocimum kilimandscharicum.

Regarding the ecotype of Ocimum basilicum, “Erevanskii” – as I mentioned in my monograph on Ocimum americanum – it is one of the two purplish ecotypes from Russia that are, obviously, Ocimum americanum… and that is why they appear, according to Klaudija Carovic’s findings, in the Ocimum americanum clade. In her 2017 study, “Morphological and biochemical intraspecific characterization of Ocimum basilicumi” ,“Erevanskii” and a second Russian ecotype of purple basil, (S60 and S63), appear, again, in a separate clade. [102]

These 4 ecotypes, analyzed by Klaudija Carovic in Croatia, as well as by Noelle Fuller in Georgia (USA) [53], are also found in the study “Population structure, genetic diversity and downy mildew resistance among Ocimum species germplasm” [23], in which the K3/1 clade constitutes an obvious autonomous population (according to the authors’ conclusion) made up of : “Blue Spice”, “Blue Spice F1”, “Spice”, PI 414204, PI 414205, PI 652056 and PI 652059 – i.e., all Ocimum bisabolenum ecotypes, as I have demonstrated in this monograph.

“Blue Spice”, “Blue Spice F1”, “Spice”, PI 414204, PI 414205, PI 652056 and PI 652059 are numbers 138 to 144 and constitute a clade. Moreover, above, n°133 is named “Spice F1/Spice x”; n°135 is PI 414201; n°136, PI 414203, is named “Spice x”;

And to this “obvious autonomous population” must be strictly added the sequence of ecotypes PI 414201, PI 414202, PI 414203 – preceding PI 414204, PI 414205 – because for these 5 ecotypes, I went to check the photographs offered by the USDA/GRIN seed bank. They are, without a doubt, 5 ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum – with compact growth, mauve flowers and brick-red pollen. [189]

Moreover, in this study, PI 414203 is named “Spice x” – O. tenuiflorum/O. americanum x. [21]

Thus, would it not be reasonable – just from a good sense point of view – to imagine that a single species, namely the temperate Tulsi (with red or white pollen) could have emanated from the Ethiopian highlands… when these concentrate two thirds of the mountainous massifs of Africa?

From a Gaian point of view, the emanation of a species (or its longevity) has nothing to do with the amplitude of a territory, in fact. I know of a species of dwarf lupine, Lupinus lepidus var. ashlandensis that grows only on the summit of Mt. Ashland in Oregon. [74] Similarly, I know of a species of Wild Buckwheat, Eriogonum villosissimum, that only grows on a cliff north of Medford at Acker Rock, Oregon. [75] And more.

By the way, speaking of Eriogonum, and other wild Buckwheats, isn’t it disturbing that it took almost half a century for the status of the red-pollinated temperate Tulsi to be mentioned… when the single species Eriogonum umbellatum, in the USA, includes more than 40 subspecies – which are, frankly, sometimes not very similar. [80] I even discovered one, myself, on Mount Adams, Washington – according to the late James Reveal, the US Polygonaceae expert. I proposed to call this new variety “Eriogonum umbellatum var. klickitatii” because Mount Adams was known by some Native American Tribes as Pahto or Klickitat.

A status of species all the more so – oh so much more, according to the mythos of modern genetics – that the temperate Tulsi, Ocimum bisabolenum, has its own specific weight of DNA (2843 Mbp) and that it is placed, by ad hoc genetic analyses, in a clade, totally, apart – as declined in a subsequent section. In fact, the 2009 study, published in Israel Journal of Plant Sciences, analyzed the GRIN/USDA PI 652059 ecotype from the Maldives – thinking it was an Ocimum tenuiflorum – whereas it’s an Ocimum bisabolenum… undoubtedly because I grew it, myself, in the summer of 2022. [55]

That is why I propose “Ocimum bisabolenum” as a true species.

In truth, it was James Simon himself who, in 1999, described the “Spice” ecotype – i.e. the Ethiopian Holy Basil – as a “β-bisabolene” chemotype.

A Temperate Tulsi of Unknown Origins

The temperate Tulsi with its spicy scent of vanilla, tutti-frutti, or myrrh – and its red pollen – has been offered commercially as organic seeds for a good forty years and I introduced it, myself, in France, as early as 1994, with Terre de Semences – the forerunner of the Kokopelli Association – under the name of “Sacred Basil”.

In fact, this Tulsi is one of the easiest to grow in temperate countries. It is “temperate” in terms of agricultural conditions… but not in terms of its fragrance which is very intense. By the way, currently, when I water my desert garden – at a rate of three good hours, daily, almost every day of the summer… because the storms turn and burst elsewhere! – this vanilla Tulsi is the only one, of the 30 types of Basil that I cultivate, to be noticed, from the nose, by releasing its strong perfume under the effect of the watering.

I had discovered this “Tulsi” in the Ali Baba’s Cave seed-catalog, of the non-profit organization, “Abundant Life Seed Foundation”, which possessed, then, 3000 varieties, or species, in seeds – largely organic – and which was consumed by an arson-induced fire in very suspect conditions, in 2003.

Abundant Life Seed Foundation was founded by Forest Shomer in Port Townsend and published its first seed catalog in 1974. I spoke with Forest several times, but he could not remember the origin of the temperate Tulsi that he had introduced to the organic gardening community on the West Coast of the USA – some 40 years ago.

But it is quite possible that I also got some seeds from my friend Mushroom – alias Alan Kapuler of Peace Seeds. Mushroom himself had originally received them from J. L. Hudson, Seedsman, from Honda in California – another catalog – of Ali Baba’s Cave type seeds. [81]

The interior of the corolla is completely glabrous. *Ocimum bisabolenum.*

The plants of this Tulsi are compact, with a very branched habit: they are about 30/45 cm wide and 35 cm high at full bloom/fruiting. The leaves, well cut, and of dark green color, can reach 50 mm length, with a petiole 10 mm long – however, most of them are much smaller. The pale mauve flowers, 6 to 7 mm long, are sessile – that is, they have a very short peduncle. The interior of the corolla is completely glabrous. Four stamens – exserted, at full maturity, well beyond the corolla – produce a pollen of brick red color. The production of seeds is abundant and fast. The plant is characterized by a very great resistance to the cold of the autumn.

The bio-mass production is enormous and in some parts of Europe it is easy to produce a second crop in the same season – after having cut everything to 10 cm height in the first harvest. According to a study in Georgia, USA, mentioned below [53], the production of the various ecotypes of temperate Tulsi is almost double the various ecotypes of Ocimum tenuiflorum.

In 2022, in Spain’s, the very famous health activist and entrepreneur, Josep Pamies [153] – and a rebel Stevia promoter – confirmed to me his astonishment when his company Pamies cultivated, for the first time, the temperate Tulsi, Ocimum bisabolenum – with seeds from the Kokopelli Association. Why was this? Because production was overabundant, and Pamies was able to harvest three times during the growing season.

In conclusion, the extremely generous production of bio-mass, for Ocimum bisabolenum, can not be compared with the parsimonious one stemming from Ocimum tenuiflorum – the more so as Ocimum tenuiflorum needs plenty of summer warmth… when Ocimum bisabolenum grows, happily, everywhere.

*Ocimum bisabolenum* seed production under the first frost, in Ariège, November 15, 2017… with minus 7°C – in Kokopelli’s gardens. Photograph by Xochi.

In the fall of 2016 – as I began, assiduously, to photograph a plethora of ecotypes and varieties of Ocimum – in order to enrich Kokopelli’s range of organic medicinal seeds – I pointed out that it could not be the species Ocimum sanctum/Ocimum tenuiflorum, native to India, because this Tulsi, very hardy to cold and very compact of port, is characterized, botanically, by pollen of brick red color and by very mucilaginous seeds when they are humidified – although this last characteristic is not sufficient, as Ocimum tenuiflorum seeds are also somewhat so.

Here are the species of Ocimum that have mucilaginous seeds. All species in the Ocimum subsection of the Ocimum section, of the genus Ocimum: Ocimum basilicum, Ocimum americanum, Ocimum kilimandscharicum, Ocimum forskolei, Ocimum fisheri, Ocimum kenyense and Ocimum citriodorum. Species of the section Gymnocymum: Ocimum campechianum and Ocimum ovatum.

Here are the species that do not have mucilaginous seeds. The species of the subsection Gratissimum of the section Ocimum: Ocimum gratissimum, Ocimum cufodontii, Ocimum jamesii, Ocimum mummularia, Ocimum spicatum, Ocimum urticifolium.

As for Ocimum tenuiflorum, in the section Hyerocimum, its mucilage is considered much less abundant than that of the subsection Ocimum. Moreover, one of Alan Paton’s botanical keys mentions it with non-mucilaginous seeds. Nonetheless, according to “Morphological variability in holy basil (Ocimum tenuiflorum L.) from India” [184], who analyzed 49 accessions of this species, originating in India: «Seeds are brownish-reddish-yellow and globose-subglobose with shining seed coat that turns mucilaginous on wetting. »

Foraging bee with a cargo of brick-red pollen offered by *Ocimum bisabolenum*. Photograph by Xochi

Moreover, the morphology of its flowers, as well as of its leaves, is different – strictly and totally – from that of Ocimum tenuiflorum. Indeed, Ocimum tenuiflorum flowers have a very long stalk – unlike Ocimum bisabolenum, the temperate Tulsi.

What’s more, Ocimum tenuiflorum pollen is yellow in color, whereas Ocimum bisabolenum pollen is brick-red – for its most widespread form in Western countries – or white.

I, thus, alerted my friends and colleagues seed producers, in all the USA (in particular Richo of Strictly Medicinal Seeds, Mushroom of Peace Seeds, Frank Morton of Wild Garden Seeds, CR Lawn of Fedco, etc) as for the fact that the Ocimum, native of India, with red pollen, that we marketed, since tens of years, under the denominations “Holy Basil”, “Tulsi”, “Sacred Basil” – and, which was, then, marketed under the denominations “Spice” and “Blue Spice”… to make it spicier – was, “specifically” speaking, nothing of what some people called it… at the whim of botanical luck.

Richter’s Seeds, in Canada, has been selling it for a very long time under the name “Spice”. Moreover, this seed company does not take any risk, specific, because it presents it in Ocimum sp. – namely, an unspecified Ocimum. [9] I grew the “Spice” ecotype, sold by Richters’s twice, myself, and it is, without doubt or appeal, strictly, the temperate Tulsi.

Indeed, some named it “Kapoor”… while this denomination characterizes, strictly, Ocimum kilimandsharicum, in all India.

On November 24, 2016, I informed my neighbor Richo Cech of Strictly Medicinal Seeds in southern Oregon that he couldn’t continue to name the temperate Tulsi “Kapoor” and “Ocimum sanctum” – which he had been doing since at least 2013 in his then Horizon Herbs catalog – because it was neither. After much hesitation, Richo then dubbed it “Ocimum africanum”.

On the West Coast of the USA, the morass surrounding Ocimum bisabolenum – the so-called “Sacred” Basil – is deeply entrenched. Perhaps it’s part of the same pathology suffered by all those old hippies who “vote” for the “Democrats”, and other woke people – on the pretext that they are the most virtuous of the virtuous – or get vaccinated against a non-existent pandemic… to save the neighbors, grandfather…

It is true that this confusion can, easily, emanate from the fact that the temperate Tulsi, then of unknown origin, and the Tulsi of Kilimanjaro, have, both, a pollen of brick red color. See, on this subject, my monograph entitled “Les Qualités Extrêmement Médicinales de la Tulsi du Kilimandjaro, Ocimum kilimandscharicum”.

To add to the botanical confusion, today, this Basil is still marketed under this name by dozens of seed companies in the USA. For example, under the name of Tulsi “Kapoor”, Ocimum africanum, by Johnny’s Seeds. [12] By the way, Johnny’s Seeds makes it clear that the other name for this Basil is “Spice Basil”.

Or, as Tulsi “Kapoor”, Ocimum sanctum, by Southern Exposure Seed Exchange… and many other seed companies. [24]

On the other hand, all these dozens of seed companies offer the correct photograph of Ocimum bisabolenum – i.e. with purple flowers, red pollen, compact habit…

*Ocimum bisabolenum.* Temperate Tulsi with a spicy vanilla and myrrh fragrance… and brick-red pollen. Photography by Xochi.

Others named it “Tulsi Rama”… whereas this denomination characterizes, mainly, Ocimum tenuiflorum (in its green form) and, sometimes, according to some pharmacological investigations, Ocimum gratissimum – such as a 2015 study [30] on the anti-bacterial, and anti-fungal activities of Ocimum kilimandscharicum, Ocimum tenuiflorum and Ocimum gratissimum.

Some pharmacological investigations identified it as “Ocimum basilicum” while others as “Ocimum americanum” or, again, Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum” – according to James Simon’s 1999 study.

Today, Richo, from Strictly Medicinal Seeds, presents it as an “Ocimum africanum” [7]… which some botanists prefer to consider as a subspecies, namely “Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum”.

It should be noted, also – which does not facilitate indexing – that many authors use the specific name “Ocimum canum” to indicate any ecotype of Ocimum africanum – and, sometimes, of Ocimum americanum

Richo states on his website (Strictly Medicinal Seeds) that a genetic analysis has identified it as such – “Ocimum africanum”… whereas all the authentically published analyses (concerning “Spice”, and “Blue Spice”, for example) prove the contrary – as I shall discuss below.

Richo also states that the major chemotypes of this ecotype are: linalool, nerol, geraniol, citral. This is completely wrong, as these components – when present in Ocimum bisabolenum – are only minor ones. Let’s repeat that the major components, in Ocimum bisabolenum, are bisabolene, eugenol, estragol, eucalyptol, β-Caryophyllene and α-Bergamotene.

Richo has been informed, as a special guest, of my discovery, since August 2022… but he preferred to bury his head in the sandy soils of the Applegate valley – like peanuts!

However, if one accepts this form of scientific mythos, which is modern genetics, then we must concede that the various forms of this temperate Tulsi, with red pollen, constitute a group apart, genetically speaking, from all varieties, or species, of Ocimum marketed.

What should we conclude from this – from a specific point of view?

Indeed, a 2013 Taiwanese study using molecular markers (random DNA amplification polymorphism) found [8] that the “Spice” and “Blue Spice” ecotypes constituted their own separate group.

The same genetic study discovered that the“Mrs. Burns”, and “Sweet Dani”, ecotypes did not belong to Ocimum basilicum at all – as they had previously been characterized – but to Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum.

Namely, this Taiwanese study divided all analyzed ecotypes into four distinct groups:

The first group contained only Ocimum basilicum varieties.

The second group contained the varieties (or ecotypes) “Lemon”, “Lime”, “East Indian”, “Mrs. Burns” and “Sweet Dani” – which are considered to belong to Ocimum citriodorum… which, according to some, is an interspecific hybrid involving Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum. According to others [38], Ocimum citriodorum and Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum would constitute a single taxon given the strict proximity, not to say similarity, of the components of their essential oils, at least in certain ecotypes – namely: linalool, nerol, geraniol and citral… and sometimes bisabolene.

The third group contained the “Spice” and “Blue Spice” ecotypes – that is, the temperate Tulsi with red pollen.

The fourth group contained the species Ocimum tenuiflorum – green and purple forms.

In “Genetic diversity among Ocimum species based on ISSR, RAPD and SRAP markers”
The third group contained the “Spice” and “Blue Spice” ecotypes – that is, the temperate Tulsi with red pollen. *Ocimum bisabolenum.*

Moreover, this Taiwanese study clearly affirmed that there was no difference between the ecotypes “Spice” and “Blue Spice”. Today, the Canadian seed company, Richter’s Seeds, which previously marketed both, now only markets “Spice”.

However, this study continued (as did a number of researchers) to include these two ecotypes in the Ocimum basilicum species – while asserting that they were, indeed, exceedingly distant, genetically speaking, from all the rest of Ocimum basilicum… like the lemon ecotypes “Sweet Dani” and “Mrs Burn”.

The same is true of the 2018 study “Traditional Plant Breeding in Ocimum”, which attributes Ocimum basilicum, and a Bisabolene chemotype, to “Blue Spice”– and offers a correct photograph. [2]

In 2016, I became aware that no botanist had ever, really, looked into the subject of this temperate Tulsi – namely, to decline its specific nature and origins. I contacted Alan Paton of Kew Botanic Garden, who is an expert on Ocimum – and the author of many essays and botanical keys on this botanical genus. He thought, at least at that time, that this “Tulsi”, with its brick red pollen, could be a form of Ocimum africanum or an interspecific hybrid between Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum africanum.

In 2002, in a study entitled “Leaf flavonoid glycosides as chemosystematic characters in Ocimum”, Alan Paton investigated the major chemotypes of leaf flavonoid glycosides as chemosystematic characters in various Ocimum species. [35] The main flavonoid glycosides of the temperate Tulsi – recorded, at that time, at the Botanical Garden of Kew, England, as “Ocimum americanum. CV Sacred. BI 6442” – were different forms of quercetin while the minor ones were kaempferol and luteolin. Vicenin was present only in Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum.

It is a hypothesis like any other… but I do not feel very satisfied. According to Paton and Putievsky (1996), the feasibility of crosses between Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum africanum depends on the varieties: it was, in their study, 0% for the variety “Dark Opal” and 12.5% for an unnamed ecotype of Ocimum basilicum sp. purpurascens – with up to 50% fertile seeds in the case of successful crosses.. [38]

Caveat. This study is far from proving a potential cross between Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum africanum, because some ecotypes of Ocimum basilicum sp. purpurascens are very close to Ocimum americanum. Indeed, geneticists have recently determined two clades in the Ocimum section of the genus Ocimum: the Ocimum basilicum clade and the Ocimum americanum clade. According to their conclusions, the Ocimum basilicum clade would include the species Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum minimum (one of its subspecies) while the Ocimum americanum clade would include the species Ocimum americanum, Ocimum africanum and two accessions of Ocimum basilicum var. purpurascens. [14]

Moreover, the 2013 study, which looked at blight resistance in 113 types of Basils, asserted that all crosses made between blight-susceptible varieties of Ocimum basilicum and blight-resistant ecotypes of Ocimum americanum were strictly sterile.[10]

Moreover, again, as I have explained at length in my section “Quasiment toutes les variétés, commercialisées, d’Ocimum basilicum sont décimées par le mildiou, Peronospora belbahrii”, it is almost, strictly, impossible to transfer, to Ocimum basilicum, a resistance to mildew from any known species… be it Ocimum americanum, Ocimum tenuiflorum, Ocimum gratissimum, Ocimum selloi, etc, etc.

The species barriers, in the Ocimum genus, seem very impassable… But who could say that they have always been so? For the Mother has been playing with matter for eons…

So, this year, I am growing, in my desert garden, about 30 varieties or ecotypes of Ocimum – some from the USDA seed bank. I hope that the bees, and other flying vectors, will honor their task in such a way as to regale us, one day, with some new form of Ocimum – a singularity of Basil emanating from the Dreamtime of our Planetary Mother.

In this respect, I will collect, more particularly, seeds: of the Kilimanjaro Tulsi, of the temperate Tulsi, of a variety of Ocimum basilicum from Rutgers (Devotion) very resistant to mildew, of a very lemony ecotype of Iranian Ocimum basilicum… hoping that this joyful company of Basils and other Ocimum, will let themselves go to the fusions (and transfusions) intrinsic to all the genetic flows in the Biosphere.

In fact, today it seems that the only fertile crosses involving Ocimum basilicum are with Ocimum kilimandsharicum – and there are not many of them, not to say that they are rare and even spontaneous. See my section entitled “Flux Génétiques de la Tulsi du Kilimandjaro”.

Today, let us repeat, once again, that the only ecotype, of Ocimum basilicum, resistant to mildew is called “Mrihani”.

The African ecotype of Ocimum basilicum, Mrihani, represents, today, the only chance for researchers, and breeders, to have a source “*Ocimum basilicum*” of total resistance to mildew. Photography by Xochi.

The African ecotype, Mrihani, represents, today, the only chance for researchers, and breeders, to have a source “Ocimum basilicum” of total resistance to mildew. “Mrihani” means Basil in Swahili. It is a term used in all Semitic languages and meaning, nowadays, Basil: Reyhan, ריחן, in Hebrew; ريحان Rihan in Arabic; Reyhan/Reyhoon in Persia, Ryhon in Tajikistan, etc. It is derived from the Semitic Root “Reyhan”.

It was Richo – who is also a botanical explorer – who brought it back to the USA from Zanzibar. Thank you Richo! What would the world of Basil be like today if Rutgers University had not had the privilege of transferring its resistances into more “classic” varieties?

For the record, Richo and I were neighbors in southern Oregon for many, many years. In fact, his grandchildren were in the alternative school where my wife, Sofy, taught one of the only subjects that the system of edu-castration does not teach: authentic crafts – knitting, moccasins, etc… It was a Waldorf type school for poor children in Southern Oregon… a South abandoned to the greed of the Cannabis Mafia – in all aspects and, above all, with regard to the biopiracy, and confiscation, of this Master Medicinal Plant, by the Pharmacratic Mafia.

In conclusion, while waiting for a wise researcher to solve the origin of this ecotype of basil, I had named it “Ocimum pollini-coccineo” – if I may call upon the Latin translation, in its dative form, for “Red Pollen Ocimum.

About the temperate Tulsi ecotypes, with red pollen, listed as Ocimum tenuiflorum in the USDA seed bank, by scientists… or by Western seed companies

I have mentioned, several times, in my medicinal monographs on Ocimum species, that I have been growing Ocimum ecotypes, for some years, kindly provided for research purposes by the USDA seed bank.

I was surprised to discover, this year, that ecotype PI 652059, from the Maldives, was not an Ocimum tenuiflorum as I had assumed, but a temperate Tulsi with red pollen. I thought, then, that I had to check, next season, that it was not a mistake on my part.

The Maldives are those islands in the Indian Ocean… east, in a straight line, from Ethiopia!

*Ocimum bisabolenum.* Ecotype of temperate Tulsi: PI 652059 (GRIN/USDA) from the Maldives. This plant is 75 cm in diameter, mid-September, and was sown in April. In the background is *Ocimum kilimandsharicum*. Photography by Xochi.

And just when I thought I was done with this essay on the origins of this Tulsi, I checked the web to see if any study had, yet, evaluated this ecotype – as many pharmacological, agronomic, botanical, etc. investigations rely on either seed marketing companies or official seed banks.

Both are a source of incredible botanical errors. This is not a rumor… but a proven fact. By the way, the GRIN ecotype, PI 253157, presented as Ocimum basilicum, from “Esfahan” in Iran, is definitely Ocimum americanum var. pilosum. I grew it in my garden, during the summer 2022, and it has two phenotypes: one with purplish flower heads (due to the violet color of the calyxes) and the other with non-purplish flower heads.

Flower of the ecotype “Esfahan”. Iran (USDA PI 253157). *Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum*. Photography by Xochi.

Thus, I have just discovered the PI 652059 ecotype in the study analyzing the resistance capacities, of multiple ecotypes, to basil downy mildew. “Resistance Against Basil Downy Mildew in Ocimum Species”. [29] It is considered to be very resistant to mildew… which is simply because all forms of temperate Tulsi are.

The same resistance is true for ecotype PI 414201… and other ecotypes of this series (PI 414203, PI 414205) which are presented as Ocimum tenuiflorum. Could they also be temperate Tulsis?

*Ocimum bisabolenum*. The well-cut, dark green leaves can reach 50 mm in length, with a 10 mm petiole – however, most of them are much smaller. Photography by Xochi.

This is, most likely, the case judging by the findings of the study, published in 2018, entitled “Variation in Growth and Development, and Essential Oil Yield between Two Ocimum Species (O. tenuiflorum and O. gratissimum) Grown in Georgia.” [53]

Indeed, this study states that the ecotypes named “Kapoor”, PI 414201, PI 414202, PI 414203, PI 414204, PI 414205, PI 652056 and PI 652059 present, all of them, the same type of leaves, the same high bio-mass productivity, the same very compact habit, the same very low rate in its essential oil… all characteristics that define a temperate Tulsi with red pollen.

According to Variation in Growth and Development, and Essential Oil Yield between Two *Ocimum* Species (*O. tenuiflorum* and *O. gratissimum*) Grown in Georgia: «Eight varieties exhibited similar leaf shape and color, with a more sprawling growth habit and greater number of stems which were more herbaceous : “Kapoor”, PI 414201, PI 414202, PI 414203, PI 414204, PI 414205, PI 652056 and PI 652059.»

All these ecotypes – with the “Kapoor” leaf shape – are definitely *Ocimum bisabolenum* – as I proved it in my present monograph. “Krishna” (*Ocimum tenuiflorum*) leaves are less rounded, than those of *Ocimum bisabolenum*, at the junction of the petiole. As for ecotype PI 288779, it is supposed to be an *Ocimum tenuiflorum* with a very high essential oil content – namely 2.2%, whereas *Ocimum bisabolenum* tops out at around 0.3%.

The 2016 study by Simon and Vieira attributed 0.27% essential oil in the temperate Tulsi ecotype, PI 414204.

The ecotypes PI 414201, PI 414202, PI 414203, PI 414204, PI 414205, PI 652056 and PI 652059 are all presented as Ocimum tenuiflorum and, except the last one from the Maldives, they are listed in the USDA seed bank in Maryland.

A botanical listing error, with regard to this unknown Tulsi species, is easily explained by the fact that it has been marketed, for more than 40 years, under the name of “Sacred Basil”; by the fact that Ocimum tenuiflorum was formerly Ocimum sanctum – i.e., “Sacred Basil”; and alos by the fact that the Ethiopian “Besobela” is now, and very recently, marketed under the name of “Ethiopian Sacred Basil”.

It would seem that the first botanical misidentification dates back to very early studies in 1980, 1985 and 1988 – by Lawrence, B. M and by Damodaran N. P. – which reported a Bisabolene chemotype (30 to 33.4%) in a Thai ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum. [122] [127]

It would seem that the same botanical misidentification dates back to a another very old Finnish study, from 1990, entitled “Constituents of the essential oil from the holy basil or tulsi plant, Ocimum sanctum”. Indeed, the authors (I. Laakso, T. Seppänen-Laakso) attributed to Ocimum sanctum 15.4% β-bisabolene and 19.6% α-bisabolene in its essential oil. [131]

*Ocimum kilimandscharicum*. Photography by Xochi.

The ecotype of “Kapoor” comes from Richo (Strictly Medicinal Seeds). I only notified Richo at the end of 2016 regarding this botanical error… as “Kapoor” is, strictly, Ocimum kilimandsharicum. Notwithstanding, Noelle Fuller, the person in charge of the study, having carried out her cultures, in Georgia, in 2015 and 2016, could not have been aware of this error.

However, she suspected it because she specifies, in conclusion that: “Unfortunately, there is a big confusion as for the origin of the cultivar Kapoor, and it is difficult to identify it botanically”.

Moreover, there is a form of genetic confirmation, in clade form, for some of these USDA ecotypes – PI 414201 and PI 414203 – in the study, from 2018, entitled “Population structure, genetic diversity and downy mildew resistance among Ocimum species germplasm.“ [23] Indeed, it is stated, in a very “mytho-genetic” jargon, that «Three F1 progenies of k3.1 accession 139 (“Spice”) hybridized with Ocimum basilicum k1.1 accessions – namely, 22 (RUSB_09), 6 (“DiGenova”) and 47 (MRI) – form a well-supported clade (0.938) with accessions 135 (PI 414201) and 136 (PI 414203). Sterility among these progeny suggest a major reproductive barrier between commercially important Ocimum basilicum k1.1 accessions and this least basal, highly supported (1.00) k3 clade.».

Could these two ecotypes – PI 414201 and PI 414203 – be hybrids between “Spice” and Ocimum basilicum?

This doesn’t make much sense, as historically, ecotypes PI 414201 and PI 41420 date back several decades. Secondly, in forty years of production of this temperate Tulsi (“Spice”, etc…), no seed grower has witnessed cross-pollination involving other Ocimum species. Then, the same genetic study affirms that no fertile progeny is possible involving “this autonomous population” comprising “7 phenotypically indistinguishable accessions”.

Since then, I’ve checked the USDA/GRIN website, which now offers photographs for many of its references: PI 414201 and PI 414203 are, resolutely and without a doubt, ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum – with compact growth, mauve flowers and brick-red pollen. [186] [187]

Moreover, it is clearly stipulated that «Two additional USDA/GRIN accessions, PI 414201 (acc. 140) and PI 414203 (acc.141), are included in this clade and parentage is unknown.» These four ecotypes are listed as Ocimum tenuiflorum by USDA/GRIN – as I mentioned above. [79]

Their parentage is now known: they are ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum.

This study states – and this is very valuable information – that: «The k3.1 cluster includes 7 phenotypically indistinguishable accessions sourced from commercial seed companies and the USDA-GRIN. This cluster is highly supported (1.00) and evidently an autonomous population».

Must I repeat? 7 phenotypically indistinguishable accessions. Evidently, an autonomous population.

These 7 ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum are all strictly resistant to Basil blight.

And what are the 7 accessions making up this “autonomous population”: “Blue Spice”, “Blue Spice F1”, “Spice”, PI 414204, PI 414205, PI 652056, PI 652059 – namely ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum. And, this, in addition to the ecotypes PI 414201 and PI 414203 – which would be, according to the authors, F1 hybrids between “Spice” (Ocimum bisabolenum) and Ocimum basilicum. [55]

May I repeat?… that PI 652059, from the Maldives, is, indubitably, Ocimum bisabolenum… because I grew it, myself, in the summer of 2022.

The 3 “Spice” types are presented, officially, as Ocimum americanum, while the other 4 accessions are presented as Ocimum tenuiflorum.

It is, also, this study that tried to hybridize the temperate Tulsi, called “Spice”, with the three varieties of Ocimum basilicum mentioned above. These researchers have even tried to cross the Tulsi “Spice” with the only variety of Ocimum basilicum totally resistant to mildew, namely Mrihani… without success because the offspring were totally sterile.

They also tried to cross these three varieties of Ocimum basilicum with an ecotype of Ocimum kilimandsharicum without more success.

In conclusion, it seems reasonable, while waiting to cultivate again all these ecotypes – PI 414201, PI 414202, PI 414203, PI 414204, PI 414205, PI 652056 and PI 652059 – to affirm that they are forms of temperate Tulsi with red pollen and a very compact habit… and not of Ocimum tenuiflorum.

The only doubt I have, for the moment, concerns PI 652056, which I found in another study [120] with a eugenol chemotype and no trace of bisabolene – i.e. eugenol, (trans)-β-guaiene, eucalyptol, α-cadinene, (β)-caryophyllene, α-bergamotene, (trans)-β-farnesene for the major components. It should be noted, firstly, that (trans)-β-guaiene, in very high content (from 4 to 20% in this ecotype), is rarely found in Ocimum and, secondly, that its high eugenol content does not match Noelle J. Fuller’s analyses in Georgia.

Recently, I went to check the photographs offered by the USDA/GRIN seed bank. PI 652056 is, without a doubt, an Ocimum bisabolenum.

In any case, this PI 652056 ecotype is indeed part of a genetic clade – with “Blue Spice”, “Blue Spice F1”, “Spice”, PI 414204, PI 414205, PI 652059 – as Robert Pyne highlighted in a study also presented in this monograph. [23]

In fact, this discovery has considerable scientific implications – botanical, genetic, pharmacological, medicinal, etc.

As far as I was concerned, I immediately realized that the Croatian study – entitled “Molecular and chemical characterization of the most widespread Ocimum species” – which claimed to have discovered Bisabolene chemotypes in four ecotypes of Ocimum tenuiflorum – MAP01627, MAP00160, MAP01656, MAP01628 – had been completely mistaken.

In conclusion, I informed Professor Klaudija Carović-Stanko, from the University of Zagreb, that the section of her study that deals with the genetic placement of Ocimum tenuiflorum – in the great Ocimum tree – is completely wrong… as it deals with various ecotypes of the temperate Tulsi.

By the way, as of September 2024, Klaudija Carović-Stanko has never answered back! Why?

And this type of scientific error – for lack of authentic botanical authentication – spreads, like fire, as everyone refers to others to go with their thesis publication.

Thus the study, from 2015, entitled “Sources of variability in essential oil composition of Ocimum americanum and Ocimum tenuiflorum”, declines the various Bisabolene chemotypes proposed by Klaudija Carović-Stanko and her team. [83]

Thus the 2021 study entitled “A glance at the chemodiversity of Ocimum species: Trends, implications, and strategies for the quality and yield improvement of essential oil” [103], mentions Bisabolene chemotypes for Ocimum tenuiflorum and for Ocimum americanum whereas, in both cases, it is temperate Tulsi ecotypes that have been analyzed in the referred studies – as I also prove it for Ocimum americanum in my monograph on this species. [105] The authors claim that the Eucalyptol/β-bisabolene chemotype is exceptional in Ocimum tenuiflorum (Carovic’-Stanko et al. 2011) and that the β-bisabolene/1,8-cineole chemotype (Vieira and Simon 2006) is exceptional in Ocimum Americanum. Quite simply because these authors have authentically analyzed ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum.

Thus the February 2023 study, “An Update on the Therapeutic Anticancer Potential of Ocimum sanctum L.: “Elixir of Life”” which asserts that “Tulsi essential oil contains a valuable source of bioactive compounds, such as camphor, eucalyptol, eugenol, α-bisabolene, β-bisabolene and β-caryophyllene.” [124] I therefore informed Professor Mohammad Raghibul Hasan, in Saudi Arabia, that he had been mistaken in this assertion, as bisabolene does not exist in Ocimum tenuiflorum and very little in the other Tulsis species of India. As for camphor, as far as I know, it has never been mentioned for this species.

Indeed, this Croatian team identified “β-bisabolene” in these four ecotypes at 51.98%; 26.68%; 25.89%; and 24.60%, respectively. [21]

What’s more, it would be a strange coincidence that four ecotypes of Ocimum tenuiflorum share the same Bisabolene chemotype – even though this element does not exist in this species. The major components of the essential oils of these 4 ecotypes were those found in most Ocimum bisabolenum ecotypes: eugenol, estragol, eucalyptol, β-Caryophyllene α-Bergamotene.

One only has to study the many analyses of the constituents of Ocimum tenuiflorum/Ocimum sanctum essential oils to realize that Bisabolene is never mentioned. For example: “Chemo-Divergence in Essential Oil Composition among Thirty One Core Collections of Ocimum sanctum L. Grown under Sub-Tropical Region of Jammu, India”. [178] “Chemical characterization of aroma compounds in essential oil isolated from “Holy Basil” (Ocimum tenuiflorum L.) grown in India”. [180] “Characteristic of aroma components and antioxidant activity of essential oil from Ocimum tenuiflorum leaves”.

To date, I’ve only come across two references to bisabolene, in a very small percentage – so take this with a pinch of salt – in Ocimum tenuiflorum. In the 2023 study “Repellency Potential, Chemical Constituents of Ocimum Plant Essential Oils, and Their Headspace Volatiles against Anopheles gambiae s. s., Malaria Vector”, which would have identified 0.4662% of “(E)-c-Bisabolene”. [128] And in the 2015 study “Essential Oil Composition of the Aerial Parts of Five Ocimum species from Western India”, which identified “trans-γ-Bisabolene” at 0.1%. [3]

These four ecotypes (MAP01627, MAP00160, MAP01656, MAP01628) are from the seed bank of the University of Zagreb, Croatia… and it is likely that they are from the USDA seed bank.

Why? Because seed banks, and botanical gardens, all over the world exchange seeds. When I created the Jardin Botanique de la Mhotte, in 1994, I exchanged a lot with botanical gardens all over the world.

Moreover, the Croatian team is not the only one to have been led astray by botanical dead ends. I just discovered a few studies which, evidently, analyzed the essential oil of temperate Tulsi ecotypes – thinking they were dealing with Ocimum tenuiflorum.

According to the 2013 Iranian study entitled “Chemical Compositions and Antimicrobial Activities of Ocimum sanctum L. Essential Oils at Different Harvest Stages”, the Ocimum tenuiflorum ecotype analyzed is characterized by equal parts Bisabolene, Eugenol and Eucalyptol chemotypes in its essential oil. It contains β-Bisabolene at levels of 20.99%, 13.29% and 18.76%, depending on the plant’s growth stage. [20]

This is almost certainly the Ethiopian temperate Tulsi – Ocimum bisabolenum. It contains the major and/or virtually permanent components of Ocimum bisabolenum – in addition to Bisabolenes: Eugenol, Estragole, Eucalyptol/1,8-Cineole, α-Humulene, γ-Elemene and α-Bergamotene.

This Iranian study was mentioned by the recent publication, July 2023, “African and Holy Basil – a review of ethnobotany, phytochemistry, and toxicity of their essential oil: Current trends and prospects for antimicrobial/anti-parasitic pharmacology”. [182]

The aim of this study, published in Arabian Journal of Chemistry, was to analyze the essential oils of Ocimum tenuiflorum and Ocimum gratissimum – known as “African Basil”. It is therefore very surprising that the photograph proposed for Ocimum gratissimum is that of Ocimum bisabolenum with its mauve flowers and brick-red pollen… whereas the flowers of Ocimum gratissimum are white, or yellow-green, with yellow pollen!

According to the Iranian study, from 2015, entitled “The Effect of Different Harvest Stages on the Quality and Quantity of the Essential Oil of Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum L.)”, the ecotype of Ocimum sanctum analyzed contained 7-10% β-bisabolene. [63]

This is almost certainly the Ethiopian temperate Tulsi – Ocimum bisabolenum. It contains, also, the major and/or virtually permanent components of Ocimum bisabolenum – in addition to Bisabolenes: Eugenol, Estragole, Eucalyptol/1,8-Cineole and α-Bergamotene.

According to the 2016 Indian study “Comparative Volatile Oil Composition of Three Ocimum Species from Western Himalaya”, the Ocimum tenuiflorum analyzed contains 16.1% bisabolene – and 23.6% eugenol. 71]

This is almost certainly the Ethiopian temperate Tulsi – Ocimum bisabolenum.

According to the 2005 study entitled “Composition of the Essential Oil of Ocimum in Poland During Vegetation”, the ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum analyzed contained 20.4% β-bisabolene and 6.9% trans-α-bisabolene – and 7% eugenol – at the end of growth. [64] This study is subsequently referred to in the 2014 study entitled “Chemical composition of the essential oil of Ocimum tenuiflorum L. (Krishna Tulsi) from North West Karnataka, India”. [132] This study is then mentioned in the 2014 study entitled “Phytoconstituents, traditional medicinal uses and bioactivities of Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum Linn.): A review”. [133]

This is almost certainly the Ethiopian temperate Tulsi – Ocimum bisabolenum.

According to the study, from 2012, entitled “Pharmacognostical, phytochemical and pharmacological variations in various species of Ocimum genus a review”, the analyzed ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum contained 13-20% of β-bisabolene and 4-7% of (E)-α-bisabolene. [104] This study repeated the information conveyed in the 2010 study “Ocimum Sanctum (tulsi): Bio-pharmacological Activities”. [123] These erroneous data were repeated, moreover, in March 2022, in the study “A Systemic Review of Ocimum sanctum (Tulsi): Morphological Characteristics, Phytoconstituents and Therapeutic Applications”. [126]

This is almost certainly the Ethiopian temperate Tulsi – Ocimum bisabolenum.

According to the Egyptian study, from 2016, entitled “Introduction of Ocimum tenuiflorum plant to the Egyptian cultivation”, the analyzed ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum contained 17.2% of β-bisabolene. [82]

Is it really an Ocimum tenuiflorum – or a temperate Tulsi with the Bisabolene chemotype? The question probably does not arise : This is almost certainly the Ethiopian temperate Tulsi – Ocimum bisabolenum.

Why? Because the seeds, of this ecotype in Egypt, originate from the Californian seed company J. L. Hudson, Seedsman… which has the reputation of being one of the introducers of the temperate Tulsi, with red pollen, in the USA, in the 80s – as per the assertion of my old friends seed-growers and the independent small organic seed companies in the western USA. Today, this catalog sells seeds of temperate Tulsi by the kilo (organically certified) and it continues to present it as Ocimum sanctum.

Now, at the risk of asking a spicy question. Because of the present, proven and blatant cases of use of an Ocimum genetic resource of the “Temperate Tulsi” type – “Sacred Basil”, “Spice”, “Blue Spice” – instead of, officially, Ocimum tenuiflorum (strictly native to India), it would be interesting to know, exactly, the number of official scientific studies whose mission was to carry out very costly and complex investigations from ecotypes of Ocimum tenuiflorum which turned out to be, authentically, temperate “Tulsi” with spicy, woody, myrrh scents – in the Bisabolene mode… and originating from Ethiopia.

Why? Because these studies relied, directly, on the USDA seed bank – or indirectly on the seed banks of botanical gardens and universities around the world in partnership with the USDA/GRIN seed bank.

And, also, because these studies drew on the seed resources offered by US – and European – seed companies since the 1980s…. which do not have a reputation of strict specific denominations! And, certainly, most of the seed companies in the USA which proposed, 40 years ago, and which continue to propose a “Sacred” basil – namely the temperate Tulsi, under the name of “Sacred Basil”, “Spice” and “Blue Spice” – have attributed to it the species Ocimum sanctum/Ocimum tenuiflorum. Indeed, this denomination is surrounded by a prestige – oh so deserved! More Spicy, Baby!

And this, in spite of the fact that they praise its exotic and vanilla fragrance, its compact habit, its resistance to cold, its very fast growth and flowering… all qualities, strictly speaking, that are antinomic to the intrinsic nature of an Ocimum tenuiflorum – growing in an environnement with a template “climate”.

It could not be otherwise because, on the one hand, the goal of a seed company is to sell seeds that are bought because they are grown with love. However, in North America, in most regions, as well as in Europe, the Tulsi Ocimum tenuiflorum is very difficult to cultivate because it needs a lot of heat, and for a long time, or a greenhouse. Tulsi Ocimum tenuiflorum only produces bio-mass in very warm conditions – or in a greenhouse.

Today, in order to verify what is happening in the USA, in the world of basil seeds, one only has to search on the Web, with the key words “Sacred, Basil, Seeds, Organic, Ocimum tenuiflorum”, to discover dozens of seed companies that continue to claim that the temperate Tulsi with red pollen – that they present, very clearly in photographs and descriptions – is an Ocimum tenuiflorum.

On the other hand, considering the extreme fame of the Besobila Ocimum in Ethiopia, it is easy to consider that they possess, for these Peoples, a “Sacred” character because, it is surely the reality… as for the various Tulsi in India. For these Peoples, this tempered Tulsi constitutes one of the bases of their food and their therapy – thus of their Life.

“Sacred”, at least, in its most sacred expression, namely “that confers Power”. In fact, the terms “sacred”, “sacrament”, “sacrifice”, etc., all come from the same etymology: “Sak” in Sanskrit, meaning “strength, power” – namely Power. What is “sacred”, for the Anthropos, generates a sharing of Power … with those who hold it, namely the Telluric Forces.

Thus, for the last 25 years, at least, there is a strong suspicion that a large part of the Western scientific studies on Ocimum tenuiflorum have been done on temperate Tulsi – for lack of authentic genetic resources.

Today, I would be inclined to propose to question all studies on Ocimum tenuiflorum when they have been carried out in Europe or North America – and even South America – in the absence of a related photograph allowing to authenticate the plant.

I thought, unfortunately, that studies on the species Ocimum tenuiflorum could be trusted when carried out in India – or in Thailand – by researchers living in the country, having access to living genetic resources, wild or cultivated, and having the possibility to have an authentic botanical determination worthy of the name…

… because Ocimum tenuiflorum is at the heart of the home of hundreds of millions of families in India – and it would be rare that a scientist in this country does not recognize this Tulsi.

However, my discoveries – presented in the next section – regarding studies done in India with temperate Tulsi, Ocimum bisabolenum, instead of Ocimum tenuiflorum, or instead of Ocimum americanum, made me question a number of “scientific” phenomena.

Thus, I discovered photographs of this ecotype from two blogs in India. A medicinal plant blog in the state of Manipur [78] and a commercial blog, for gardeners, full of atrocious advertisements and monstrous botanical errors [77]. In both these blogs, the temperate Tulsi is presented as Ocimum tenuiflorum.

One of the conclusions, from this botanical specific determination marasmus, is that it would be necessary to verify all the Western “scientific” studies, which used the temperate Tulsi, Ocimum bisabolenum, since a quarter of century, instead of Ocimum tenuiflorum… in order to put back some biological, chemical, genetic, morphological clocks, on time.

And, above all, in order to gather precious informations, as to the real nature, and attributes, of the temperate Tulsi, which were presented, in all clarity, for so many years… but under another Latin name.

Why? In order to argue, even better, about the necessity to give a species name to the Temperate Tulsi, because it seems that its morphological and agronomic characteristics were not enough to persuade the Western experts of the basil world…

Western experts of the basil world who, moreover, in the space of a quarter of a century, have never discovered that a serious botanical determination error invalidates the conclusions of a certain number of European and American studies on Ocimum tenuiflorum.

For example, let us start with this 2003 study entitled “Genetic Diversity of Basil (Ocimum spp.) based on RAPD Markers”. [188] In fact, everything described in this study about Ocimum tenuiflorum concerns an ecotype called “Sacred”, distributed by Nichols Gardens, and whose identity is clearly that of a temperate Tulsi – according to the photographs, and the description, of this seed company – despite the fact that it is presented as an Ocimum tenuiflorum. [57]

In this study, it is noted that although the species Ocimum tenuiflorum and Ocimum selloi share the same botanical section, they are only 36% similar – based on their genetic analysis – because they are dealing with Ocimum bisabolenum. We can therefore deduce that Ocimum bisabolenum cannot be placed in the same botanical section as Ocimum tenuiflorum and Ocimum selloi – a fact that is obvious to any astute botanist or observer.

It’s worth noting that, in the same study, ecotype Ot21 – namely Ocimum bisabolenum PI 414204 – then presented as Ocimum americanum var. pilosum, is completely isolated in the similarity chart – as is the so-called Ocimum tenuiflorum at the other end of the chart.

For example, next. There is an Australian study, entitled “Antimicrobial Activity of Tulsi (Ocimum tenuiflorum) Essential Oil and Their Major Constituents against Three Species of Bacteria” [98], in which the supposed ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum contains more than 27% bisabolene in its flowering tops and, strangely, very little in its essential oil. In fact, according to the results obtained in this study, this ecotype contained, for β-bisabolene, 10.65% in the flowers, 3.29% in the leaves and 2.2% in the essential oil; for α-bisabolene, 16.71% in the flowers, 5.38% in the leaves and 23.83% in the essential oil.

It has a very high camphor content.

In fact, the authors make it very clear that: «Although the major types of volatile compounds identified by this study (monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes) were also identified in other studies, there are important quantitative differences in the distribution of these compounds in plants grown in other geographical areas. In previous reviews, Tulsi essential oil was generally reported to contain volatile compounds comprising monoterpenes such as linalool, estragol, eugenol, and small quantities of methyl cinnamate, cineole, tannins, camphor, and other compounds ».

That’s an understatement on their part – and I presume they have no botanical knowledge whatsoever – because, to date, there is no mention of camphor in Ocimum tenuiflorum, and only exceptional mentions of very low levels of bisabolene. Moreover, the authors mention the study by Prakash and Gupta (2005). “Therapeutic uses of Ocimum sanctum (Tulsi) with a note on eugenol and its pharmacological actions: a short review” … whereas there is no mention of camphor in Ocimum tenuiflorum. [154]

Is it really an Ocimum tenuiflorum or a temperate form of Tulsi? It is most likely an Ocimum bisabolenum with a “Bisabolene/Camphor” chemotype – if no mistake on their part.

For example, again. According to the 1996 study “Essential oils of Ocimum gratissimum L. and Ocimum tenuiflorum grown in Andhra Pradesh” [106], Lawrence et al., in 1980, and Philip and Damodaran, in 1985, reported the existence of a Thai ecotype, of Ocimum tenuiflorum, containing 30% to 33.4% bisabolene.

Is it really an Ocimum tenuiflorum or a temperate form of Tulsi?

For example, once again. The 2015 Iranian study, “Chemical Compositions and Antimicrobial Activities of Ocimum sanctum L. Essential Oils at Different Harvest Stages”, analyzed an ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum and identified two major components in the leaves: eucalyptol and β-bisabolene at 20.99%; and three major components in the flowering tops: eucalyptol, eugenol and β-bisabolene at 18.76%. [118] The results of this study are echoed by another Iranian study, from 2020, “Constituents and Biological Activities Some of the Selected Ocimum Species: A Review”. [119]

Is it really an Ocimum tenuiflorum or a temperate form of Tulsi?

Another valuable information is provided in a study entitled “Estimation of nuclear DNA content of cultivated Ocimum species by using flow cytometry”. [55] According to this study, the DNA content of the temperate Tulsi ecotype – PI 652059 from the Maldives – is 2843 Mbp. This study, of course, claims to analyze an ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum but this error allows us to appreciate the genetic amplitude of the DNA of a temperate Tulsi ecotype – for what it is worth.

This Maldives ecotype is the one from the USDA seed bank that I grew this year – along with the “Spice” ecotype, from Canadian seed company Richter’s, and the “Tulsi. Sacred Basil” ecotype from the Kokopelli Association that I introduced in France in 1994. These three ecotypes are, strictly, identical – at least from a morphological point of view if not for the content of their essential oil. And still… because the perfume of these three ecotypes is just as intense and exotic.

This is a valuable information because the size of the genome of Ocimum tenuiflorum has been calculated several times… and it is not at all the same amplitudes of DNA.

In fact, according to the following publications, the genome of Ocimum tenuiflorum would be 5 to 6 times smaller than that of the temperate Tulsi.

Rastogi et al. in 2015, in their study “Unravelling the genome of Holy basil: An “incomparable” “elixir of life” of traditional Indian medicine” – with supporting photographs – state that the genome of Ocimum tenuiflorum is 386 Mbp. [58]

This information is confirmed, in the 2016 essay, “The Holy Basil (Ocimum sanctum L.) and its Genome” – with supporting photographs. [61]

Upadhyay et al. in 2015, in their study titled “Genome sequencing of herb Tulsi (Ocimum tenuiflorum) unravels key genes behind its strong medicinal properties” – with supporting photographs – state that the genome of Ocimum tenuiflorum is 374 mbp – for 61% coverage with an estimated 612 Mbp. [58]

According to the study “The complete chloroplast genome of Ocimum tenuiflorum L. subtype Rama Tulsi and its phylogenetic analysis”, the length of the complete circular chloroplast genome is 151,722 bp. [60] According to the study of Rastogi et al. the length of the complete circular genome of the chloroplast of Ocimum tenuiflorum is 142 524 bp. At that time, according to Rastogi, Ocimum tenuiflorum constituted the smallest (analyzed) genome in the Lamiaceae Family. Because the genome of Salvia miltiorrhiza is 151 328 bp.

We meet again Klaudija Carović-Stanko et al., from the University of Zagreb, in their 2010 study entitled “Genetic relations among basil taxa (Ocimum L.) based on molecular markers, nuclear DNA content, and chromosome number” [62]. This team of Croatian researchers used an ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum from Germany (MAP01628) and estimated the genome size of Ocimum tenuiflorum at 386 Mbp.

In contrast to her subsequent study, erroneously using four temperate Tulsi ecotypes, it would appear that, this time, it is a genuine ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum because the results, obtained by Klaudija Carović-Stanko, are consistent with other studies. One can assume that this ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum comes from the very ancient (and very extensive) seed bank of Gatersleben… which is much closer to India than Maryland, USA, is.

As for the basic chromosome number of Ocimum tenuiflorum, it was identified as 2 N = 16, 32 or 36 in Asia and as 2N = 72, by Paton, in the USA, in 1996. The question arises whether Paton, at that time, was aware of the prevailing botanical morass and whether he actually analyzed an ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum – and not an ecotype of temperate Tulsi.

And we’re not at the end of our “genetic” surprises with the 2016 study “Genetic characterization of Ocimum genus using flow cytometry and inter-simple sequence repeat markers” – by Monika Rewers, Iwona Jedrzejczyk – which has published the results of its calculation of genome size for a number of Ocimum species, and populations, including 5 ecotypes presented as Ocimum tenuiflorum. These 5 ecotypes come from the USDA/GRIN seed bank and are : PI 652059 (Maldives), PI 652056, PI 414205, PI 652057, and PI 288779. [179]

This study comes from Poland and, for the record, I have already pointed out a monumental error in another Polish study from 2005, entitled “Composition of the Essential Oil of Ocimum in Poland During Vegetation”. According to the authors, the ecotype of Ocimum tenuiflorum analyzed contained, at the end of growth, 20.4% β-bisabolene and 6.9% trans-α-bisabolene – and 7% eugenol. [64] It was, therefore, an Ocimum bisabolenum.

The first three are ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum – PI 652059 (Maldives), PI 652056 and PI 414205 – as I prove in this monograph. As for PI 288779, it’s probably a real Ocimum tenuiflorum – with a lot of essential oil (2.2%) and a Eugenol/β-Cariophyllene chemotype. As for PI 652057, its leaf morphology is similar to PI 288779 – according to another study already cited [53]– as is its essential oil content, and its eugenol chemotype. It is, presumably, thus, also a true Ocimum tenuiflorum.

All the more so as the same study [53] describes them as similar to the Rama and Krishna ecotypes, the green and purple forms of the Sacred Tulsis, Ocimum tenuiflorum, in India.

Recently, I went to check the photographs offered by the USDA/GRIN seed bank. PI 652057 and PI 288779 are indeed Ocimum tenuiflorum. [190]

The genome size of the 5 ecotypes is presented as 4489 Mbp for PI 652056, 4372 Mbp for PI 652059 (Maldives), 4421 Mbp for PI 414205, 1848 Mbp for PI 288779 and 900 Mbp for PI 652057.

Genetic mythology not being a totally exact science, we can consider that the genome sizes of ecotypes PI 652059 (Maldives), PI 652056 and PI 414205, roughly correspond to the 2843 Mbp proposed by the older 2009 study published in Israel Journal of Plant Sciences.

As for the much smaller genome size of the other two ecotypes – presumably Ocimum tenuiflorum – it seems more logical in view of the other genetic analyses of this genome.

And to keep exposing the errors concerning Ocimum tenuiflorum:

I have just discovered a very recent Ethiopian study, “Chemical composition and antioxidant activities of the essential oils of Lippia adoensis and Ocimum sanctum” – published in 2022 in the Bulletin of the Chemical Society of Ethiopia – which analyzed two populations belonging, allegedly, to Ocimum tenuiflorum, originating from Bishoftu (1920 meters above sea level) and Debre Berhan (2840 meters above sea level). The samples were purchased from the local market. The Bishoftu ecotype contained 31.38% E-α-bisabolene while the Debre Berhan ecotype contained 24.50% E-α-bisabolene and 0.55% (E)-γ-bisabolene. [108]

With such a Bisabolene chemotype, we are obviously dealing with two ecotypes not of Ocimum tenuiflorum but of Besobila growing in the Ethiopian highlands. The other predominant elements in the essential oil of these two ecotypes of temperate Tulsi are methylcyclohexane, eucalyptol and methyl-chavicol (eugenol).

Another study, published in 2018, “A review on: Indian traditional shrub Tulsi (Ocimum sanctum): The unique medicinal plant”, obviously features photographs involving Ocimum bisabolenum – including leaves from the ecotype of Ocimum bisabolenum known as Spice. [125]

Another very recent study, published in August 2023, “Swiss ADME Predictions of Phytoconstituents Present in Ocimum sanctum Linn”, pretends that the presence of bisabolene in Ocimum tenuiflorum could not be more normal – without giving further references. [121]

Another study, from 2021, is entitled “Tulsi – A Review Based Upon Its Ayurvedic and Modern Therapeutic Uses”. Unfortunately for its authors, the photograph presented in this publication represents, strictly speaking, the temperate Tulsi, Ocimum bisabolenum. [130]

Unfortunately for its authors, the photograph presented in this publication represents, strictly speaking, the temperate Tulsi, *Ocimum bisabolenum*. And not *Ocimum tenuiflorum* – as indicated.

This study was written by four authors from the “Shuddhi Ayurveda clinics” network of Ayurvedic clinics based in Punjab. Perhaps they’ve never seen Tulsi, Ocimum tenuiflorum, in a garden? Then they would know that Ocimum tenuiflorum/Ocimum sanctum pollen is not brick-red but yellow.

Another Iranian study, from 2017, “Protection of polyunsaturated fatty acids of fish oil from common Kilka (Clupeonella cultriventris caspia) using holy basil (Ocimum sanctum) essential oil”, identified β -bisabolene at 15.89% in a local ecotype assumed to be Ocimum tenuiflorum. [160]

This is most certainly the Ethiopian temperate Tulsi – Ocimum bisabolenum – and it should be noted that its other major components are those usually found in Ocimum bisabolenum: eugenol 13.82%; eucalyptol 12.10%; estragole 17.97%.

Also noteworthy is the publication of Chapter 6, “Phytochemical and Pharmacological Overview on Ocimum sanctum: effect of growth stages”, by Geeta Tewari and Lata Rana, in the book “Natural Products and Their Utilization Pattern” published in 2020 by Nova Science Publishers. [162]

These two scientists, Geeta Tewari and Lata Rana – from the University of Kumaun in the state of Uttarakhand, India – are mentioned several times in the next chapter, of this essay, as they have published a number of studies on Ocimum americanum that characterize, in fact, Ocimum bisabolenum.

This chapter is completely erroneous, as it presents all the misattributions of Bisabolene – which I have outlined above – to ecotypes of Ocimum tenuiflorum which are, in truth, ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum.

“Natural Products and Their Utilization Pattern” is worth a whopping $226… and let’s hope the rest of the book doesn’t live up to chapter 6 – which is completely misleading!

I should also mention the publication of a very recent study, in July 2023, A comparison of high- and low-resolution gas chromatography–mass spectrometry for herbal product classification: A case study with Ocimum essential oils”, which comments on the common presence of Bisabolene in Ocimum tenuiflorum, referring to all the studies I have strictly invalidated – for example, the one from Poland – and which should be retracted. [177]

Warning. When searching the Web for Ocimum tenuiflorum/Ocimum sanctum, whatever the language, robots will propose, very often, images that are, very resolutely, photographs of Ethiopian Sacred Basil, Ocimum bisabolenum – on a great many occasions: health blogs: [165]; botanical sections of universities: [170]; seed traders on the Web – including from India: [168], [173], [174], [175] and including Amazon: [169], scientific journals: [176], etc, etc.

One such image, with red pollen, is even proposed by Kew Botanic Garden – where Ocimum expert Alan Paton works… but, mysteriously, the clicked image doesn’t link to the Kew site.

About the temperate Tulsi ecotypes, with red pollen, listed as Ocimum americanum in North America and Asia

Thus, today, if one prides oneself on botanical or scientific precision, it is imperative to be aware of the fact that temperate Tulsi has been the subject of Western studies on Ocimum tenuiflorum – for the precise reasons explained above – even though Western botanists (Alan Paton, James Simon, etc.) had assimilated it to an Ocimum americanum.

And I reiterate that this specific determination, Ocimum americanum, by these botanists, concerns as much the temperate Tulsi marketed in North America, and in Europe, as the temperate Tulsi, Besibola, from Ethiopia.

Therefore, it seems logical to suspect that the same kind of error may have occurred in Asia – that is, that some studies have focused on temperate Tulsi… instead of ecotypes of Ocimum americanum sp. americanum or sp. pilosum.

It is necessary to imagine that if, for thousands of years, Ocimum kilimandsharicum (originating from Kilimanjaro) is naturalized in India, that if ecotypes of Ocimum americanum sp. americanum or sp. pilosum (originating from Africa) are as well… it is the same with the temperate Tulsi originating from Ethiopia.

Thus, I would be inclined to be equally vigilant with regard to studies, coming from America, concerning certain ecotypes supposed to be Ocimum americanum – for example, when they are characterized by a high level of Bisabolene.

Why? Because, at the same time, I am finishing my next medicinal monograph on Ocimum americanum and I have, expressly, checked: Bisabolene is only rarely mentioned as a component of the essential oil of the ecotypes of Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum or Ocimum americanum sp. americanum in Africa – and even in Southeast Asia.

For example. A 2003 Purdue University study – by James Simon and Roberto Vieira – analyzed three ecotypes of Ocimum americanum. [68] The third one (Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum) was of the “Bisabolene” chemotype and contained 30-40% β-bisabolene – also with a high level of eucalyptol. But amazingly, this ecotype is PI 414204, from the USDA seed bank. So it is a temperate Tulsi ecotype.

It is, therefore, the same PI 414204, analyzed, in the study in Georgia, in 2015 and 2016… except that 13 years later, it is no longer an Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum but an Ocimum tenuiflorum. What should we do?

And the same for India or Nepal. Indeed, as Ocimum kilimandsharicum is well adapted, by its origins, to high Himalayan areas, or mountainous regions of southern India, so is the temperate Tulsi from Ethiopia which is well resistant, even, to temperatures below 0°C.

Thus, I discovered photographs of this ecotype, coming from Katmandu, in Nepal, presented by a botanist requiring its specific determination. In this ecotype in Nepal, the style is, sometimes, extremely long. [25] [26]

I am, therefore, in the process of checking with these Nepalese botanists whether the Ethiopian Tulsi, with its red pollen, is also dispersed in distant regions of Nepal – and not only in the Kathmandu region, in Bhaktapur and Gyaneswor, at an altitude of 1350/1500 meters. Why? Because I went to Nepal, several times, around 2010 – and also to Bhutan, once, invited by the Ministry of Agriculture to give a course on organic vegetable seed production…

I distributed tons of organic seeds, from the Kokopelli Association, while we were in the process of setting up a branch in Nepal, “Kokopelli Himalayas” – with the help of Stéphane Fayon, the director of the seed bank in Auroville, in Tamil Nadu, which we had created in 2000.

These seeds were distributed in the greater Kathmandu region, in the greater Pokara Lake region and in Mustang. The “Kokopelli Himalayas” branch did not exist for very long because our charming local partner did not share the same notions of ethics and transparency as ours!

In 2000, I smuggled 250 kilos of organic seeds into India – via the port of Chennai… Together with Stéphane Fayon, director of Annadana, the seed bank in Auroville, Tamil Nadu, we distributed huge quantities of seeds all over Asia – including, I’m sure, many seed-packets of the temperate Tulsi. For example, to the whole network of Tibetan refugee villages – all over India.

Among these thousands of Kokopelli seed-packets distributed, free of charge, to Nepalese farmers, was, of course, the temperate Tulsi, with red pollen, which we have been distributing commercially, in France, since 1994. Thus, in Asia, the Kokopelli Association has distributed tens of thousands of seed-packets – including the tempered Tulsi with red pollen – in Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Cambodia… and this, in a very structured way, because I was the very subject of these trips.

Moreover, multiple NGOs have been distributing Kokopelli’s seeds – as part of the “Seeds without Borders” program – for more than 20 years in Nepal, in India and in many other poor countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America.

In conclusion, the endemic presence of the temperate Tulsi, with its red pollen, in the Himalayas needs to be verified by experienced botanists… in order to authenticate that it is not a very recent introduction. And if we judge by the following study, considering the number of analyzed chemotypes, it should be several naturalized ecotypes of temperate Tulsi.

Knowing that we ourselves, with Terre de Semences and, subsequently, the Kokopelli Association, have most certainly disseminated different ecotypes/chemotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum around the world… because, since 1994, we’ve sometimes sourced organic Ocimum bisabolenum seeds from the USA, simply because our network of organic growers wasn’t producing enough.

In 2013, an Indian study analyzed 10 wild ecotypes of Ocimum americanum growing in the northwestern Himalayas and identified 6 chemotype groups. [69] Four ecotypes belonged to the “Bisabolene/Eugenol” group – with, respectively, 19.7% to 33.6% Bisabolene and 27.6% to 38.2% Eugenol. One ecotype belonged to the “Estragole/Bisabolene” group – with 28.9% estragole and 21.8% Bisabolene respectively.

With 5 ecotypes of Ocimum americanum, out of 10 ecotypes analyzed, having a Bisabolene chemotype, it is likely that this is the temperate Tulsi in one form or another. It should be noted, moreover, that one of these ecotypes comes from the plain while the other four grow at elevations between 1620 meters and 1950 meters.

Another Indian study, from 2018, “Impact of Drying Methods on Essential Oil Composition of Ocimum americanum L. From Kumaun Himalayas”, analyzed an ecotype of Ocimum americanum growing in the northwestern Himalayas – namely in Ranikhet, in the state of Uttarakhand, at 1900 meters altitude. According to the analysis of its essential oil, it is a chemotype with almost 50% Bisabolene – namely up to 29.23% β-bisabolene and 17.49% (Z)-α-bisabolene. [158]

This study appears to echo the results obtained by the same team’s 2016 study, “Chemical profile of Ocimum americanum L. from north- western Himalayan region: A comparative study”. [70]

This is almost certainly the Ethiopian temperate Tulsi – Ocimum bisabolenum. In fact, it was the same team led by Geeta Tewari (University of Kumaun) that published studies analyzing Ocimum Bisabolenum – with the intention of analyzing Ocimum tenuiflorum or Ocimum americanum. I wrote, in August 2022, to Geeta Tewari … but she never answered!! A bunch of PhD scientists must be in panic, obviously.

Moreover, all these errors, concerning the preponderant presence of Bisabolene in Ocimum americanum, are repeated, and declined, in the study, of 2019, “Effect of Natural Drying Methods on Flavour Profile of Camphor Rich Ocimum americanum L. from North India”, again by the same team. [159]

The same Geeta Tewari, from Kumaun University, published in May 2022, the study “Identification of the Aroma Compounds of Ocimum americanum as a Function of Growth Stages and their In Vitro Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Potential”, which analyzed wild plants of Ocimum americanum growing in the northwestern Himalayas, in the state of Uttarakhand – namely in Ranikhet, at 1900 meters above sea level and in Champawat at 1850 meters above sea level. For these two ecotypes, the level of β-bisabolene ranged from 14.46% to 29.74% while (E)-α-bisabolene ranged from 11.42% to 22.17%. [72]

This is almost certainly the Ethiopian temperate Tulsi – Ocimum bisabolenum. Moreover, its other major components are those usually found in Ocimum bisabolenum: eugenol 10.42%; eucalyptol 17.40%; estragole 17.83% – as well as germacrene D and (E)-β-ocimene.

Moreover, in Ethiopia, a study, from 2010, analyzed the composition of the essential oil of an ecotype of “Besobila” identified as an Ocimum americanum. Its major component was eucalyptol at 21.82% and followed by β-bisabolene at 15.93% and trans-α-bisabolene at 13.74% – making it a predominantly “Bisabolene” chemotype. [50]

It is clearly a form of tempered Tulsi – as it is called “Besobila”.

What’s more. In a 2018 study entitled “Product authenticity versus globalization – The Tulsi case”, it is discovered that an ecotype named “Vana 8258” is sometimes presented as an Ocimum americanum and sometimes as an Ocimum gratissimum and sometimes as an Ocimum tenuiflorum when classifying Ocimum in genetic clades. [84]

This is without mentioning the scale presented, in this study, for a series of photographs of blurred flowers… which is totally wrong.

But what is even more surprising is that it was included in the large clade of Ocimum basilicum, Ocimum americanum and Ocimum kilimandscharicum – far from Ocimum gratissimum.

The researchers of this study specify, in fact, that two commercial ecotypes of Ocimum gratissimum, “Vana”, arrived from Milan and that one of them gave them some trouble with the identification. One of these Ocimum “Vana” (Milanese) is found, by the way, in another study, from 2010, entitled “A comparative study of different DNA barcoding markers for the identification of some members of Lamiaceae.” [85]

And what is even more surprising is that the photographs, proposed for this ecotype (Milanese) present, most probably, an ecotype of Ethiopian temperate Tulsi, with white pollen.

If I were a Tulsi grower in the Milan area, I would opt for a temperate form of Tulsi (with red or white pollen) because the production is much more considerable – especially considering the very tropical Ocimum gratissimum. This was realized this year by a friend of mine, a distributor of medicinal plants in the north of Spain, who ordered by mistake the temperate Tulsi of Kokopelli, with red pollen, instead of Ocimum tenuiflorum, and who was so happy with this mistake – in terms of bio-mass production of Tulsi.

A Tempered Tulsi with spicy, woody, myrrh scents… in Bisabolene mode

Richo mentions, on its site, that the ecotype of temperate Tulsi, with the red pollen – marketed by Strictly Medicinal Seeds – is of chemotype “Eugenol”.

I assume that this determination is based on the above mentioned study of Noelle Fuller in Georgia… who was looking for the eugenol content in a collection of Tulsis, sent by Richo, and Ocimum tenuiflorum (supposedly) from the USDA. However, one only has to look at the table of eugenol levels, for all ecotypes, to discover that we know nothing about their major chemotypes. Eugenol is only present at 7% to 17% in the “Kapoor” ecotypes, PI 414201, PI 414202, PI 414203, PI 414204, PI 414205, PI 652056 and PI 652059 – at least for the 2015 growing season.

Indeed, Noelle Fuller expresses her very great amazement that, in the 2016 growing season, the eugenol level rose to 30% to 39%. This is really surprising, because, for example, the PI 414203 ecotype had 7% eugenol in 2015 and 39% in 2016. It is very rare that there is such a difference in the essential oil composition of the same ecotype grown in the same site.

That being said, a study, from 2014, highlighted the variability in the essential oil of the aforementioned ecotype, PI 652056, regarding its eugenol content, and its two other major components, depending on the date of harvest and growth. The changes are indeed drastic: for eugenol, from 25.3% to 51.5%; for β-caryophyllene from 1.2% to 25.4%; for trans-β-guaiene from 9.4% to 19.2%. Could this be a temperate Tulsi, with red pollen, of Eugenol chemotype? [54]

According to Noelle Fuller’s analysis, it is not, at least for 2015, as its Eugenol content is 14-27%, depending on the two years of cultivation.

As for the three temperate Tulsi ecotypes presented in a recent Ethiopian study of March 2021 – and described in a next section – with a very high bisabolene content, their eugenol content is, respectively, 13.96%; 12.08% and 7.4%.

It would be very interesting if Richo could carry out a precise and complete analysis of all the components of his essential oil, because, to date, the analyses concerning the various forms of this temperate Tulsi, have all attributed a “Bisabolene” chemotype – up to 33% of the essential oil.

And even more so, if we take into consideration the fact that this temperate Tulsi, with brick red pollen, is one, specifically speaking, with the three Ethiopian ecotypes, with white pollen, presented in a subsequent section. Indeed, these three Ethiopian ecotypes contain, respectively, 45.79%, 43.92% and 27.22% of Bisabolene.

For example. According to a Serbian study, from 2015, [11], an ecotype of this temperate “Tulsi”, under the name “Blue Spice”, was characterized by a “β-bisabolene” chemotype up to 23.8% – with, also, 7% trans-α-bisabolene.

In addition to β-bisabolene and trans-α-bisabolene, the predominant components, of its essential oil, were: eugenol (16.2%), eucalyptol (14.3%), estragol (11.8%) and α-trans-bergamotene (3.2%).

For example. According to James Simon’s study in the USA, in 1999, on about 40 accessions of Ocimum, the “Spice” ecotype – which he attributed, at that time, to Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum – contained 33% of bisabolene in addition to 32% of eucalyptol and 16% of estragole… without eugenol. James Simon specified that «A group of ornamental basil plants were selected and named for their characteristic aroma, including “Anise” (methyl chavicol), “Cinnamon” (methyl cinnamate), “Licorice” (methyl chavicol) and “Spice” (β-bisabolene). »

This ecotype was also characterized by a low essential oil content of 0.22%, the lowest in the study – while the highest contents were found in Ocimum kilimandsharicum (5.22%) and “African Blue” (Ocimum kilimandsharicum X Ocimum basilicum) with 2.34%. [39]

In fact, it seems that the first studies mentioning bisabolene in connection with the “Spice” ecotype date from the work of Helen H. Darrah, in 1974 [129] and, subsequently, in 1980 – in “The cultivated basils” (Thomas Buckeye Printing Company). It was, then, the Brazilian Ulysses Paulino de Albuquerque who mentioned it in his work on Ocimum – in the study “Taxonomy and ethnobotany of the genus Ocimum”. [1]

For example. A 2003 Purdue University study – by James Simon and Roberto Vieira – analyzed three ecotypes of Ocimum americanum. The third ecotype, PI 414204 – a temperate Tulsi from the USDA seed bank – was of the chemotype “Bisabolene” and contained 30-40% β-bisabolene. At the time, Simon attributed it, also, to Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum. [68] We will, later on

The β-bisabolene – a sesquiterpene – could it, perhaps, lead us down the path of identifying this “Blue Spice”/“Spice”/“Holy Basil”/“Temperate Tulsi” ecotype?

Bissabol, Bissa Bol and Bisabolenes

In the beverage industry, Bisabolene is characterized by a fruity, balsamic, lemon, myrrh, spicy, woody, green, banana fragrance. It is the β-bisabolene that is approved, in Europe, as a food supplement.

There are three isomers of Bisabolene: α-, β-, and γ-bisabolene.

In addition, between 1985 and 2020, 356 sesquiterpenoid compounds of the bisabolene type were identified in 24 botanical families, including the Lamiaceae, Asteraceae and Zingiberaceae

Etymologically, the sesquiterpene class “Bisabolenes” takes its name from Bisabol. Bisabol, or Bissabol, or Bissa Bol (a Hindi term, then adopted in Arabic) is a famous resin produced by an African Myrrh tree, Commiphora guidotti – growing in Ethiopia and Somalia. It is a fragrant Myrrh, unlike bitter Myrrh, which is called “Beera Bol”.

On the London market in 1852, Bissa Bol was advertised as “Gum Bhesaboll”.

Bisabol is also referred to as “Fragrant Myrrh”, “Sweet Myrrh” and “Opoponax”, as well as locally in Somali as “Xabak xadi” – pronounced “habak hadi”.

An ecotype of Commiphora guidotti, from Ethiopia, contains, for example, 22.2% cis-α-bisabolene, as a second component. [1]

This resin was described in 1852 by the surgeon Vaughan – in his article entitled “Notes upon the drugs observed at Aden, Arabia” – which he named “Bissa Bol”. According to his report, this resin was exported to China and India to be mixed with cattle feed to increase and improve milk production. See the 1991 essay “The botanical origin of scented myrrh (Bissabol or Habak Hadi)”. [24]

In Arabian lands, the other myrrh is the resin of the species Commiphora myrrha, locally called “Hirabol” or “Heera Bol” – and “Bola” in Hindi.

In addition to Commiphora guidotti, other species of the same genus – Commiphora erythrea [2], Commiphora kua [3], Commiphora africana – contain many elements of the Bisabolene class as major compounds.

An ecotype of Commiphora africana contains, for example, 61.6% α-oxobisabolene, 10% γ-bisabolene, 4% α-bisabolol and 3.4% β-bisabolene – i.e. almost 80% Bisabolene type elements.

However, from the point of view of the Industry – which is always a harmful and biocidal point of view – the plant world does not produce enough Bisabolene. Thus, for example, a study in February 2021, entitled “High-efficiency production of bisabolene from waste cooking oil by metabolically engineered Yarrowia lipolytica”, presented the chimeric production of Bisabolene from transgenic yeast of the species Yarrowia lipolytica. [66]

The genes for α-bisabolene, β-bisabolene and γ-bisabolene are from Vancouver Fir (Abies grandis), Ginger (Zingiber officinale ) and Sunflower (Helianthus annuus), respectively.

In fact, there is a growing body of research aimed at chemomerizing bisabolenes so that the industry can produce more of them:

“Advances in metabolic engineering for the microbial production of naturally occurring terpenes-limonene and bisabolene: a mini review”. [149]

“Engineering Saccharomyces cerevisiae for enhanced (–)-α-bisabolol production”. [151]

“Highly Efficient Biosynthesis of γ-Bisabolene with a New Sesquiterpene Synthase AcTPS5 by Dual Cytoplasmic-Peroxisomal Engineering in Saccharomyces cerevisiae”. [163]

“Engineering Saccharomyces cerevisiae for synthesis of β-myrcene and (E)-β-ocimene”. [164]

“Combining Metabolic Engineering and Lipid Droplet Storage Engineering for Improved α-Bisabolene Production in Yarrowia Lipolytica”. [166]

Abundance of Bisabolenes in Ethiopian Sacred Basil: the temperate Tulsi, with its red pollen, is of Ethiopian origin

In Ethiopia, the traditional basils, very famous for their food and medicinal properties, are called “Besobela”, “Besobila”, “Besobla” and “Basobila”.

All these traditional names are in Amharic – an Ethiopian language which is just as Semitic, as per its linguistic origins, as Hebrew, Arabic, etc. Besobila is written በሶብላ.

It is very obvious that this denomination is inspired by its perfume induced, partly, by a strong rate of bisabolene – that is to say, a very intense perfume such as that of the “Sweet Myrrh”…

I first discovered the existence of “Besobela” in a 1999 thesis entitled “Chemical Investigations of Three Ocimum Species of Ethiopia”. [43] Its author, Abebe Getachew, presented the essential oils of three Ocimum species growing in Ethiopia. These were Ocimum basilicum sp. thyrsiflorum, Ocimum americanum and Ocimum lamiifolium.

Traditionally, in Ethiopia, Ocimum basilicum sp. thyrsiflorum is called, “Ajuban” or “Ashkuti”. Ocimum lamiifolium is known as “DamaKesse”. It is one of the most widely used medicinal Ocimum species in certain regions of Ethiopia. Ocimum cufodontii is another medicinal Ocimum species growing in Ethiopia [18] – along with many other species of African or Asian origin: Ocimum americanum, Ocimum gratissimum, etc.

Indeed, what caught my attention from the very first paragraph – in my quest to find the origin of the red-pollinated temperate Tulsi – was the traditional name given by Abebe Getachew to one of the three species, namely “Besobla”, which he attributed to the species Ocimum americanum in its two forms – sp. americanum and sp. pilosum.

What’s more, in 1999, Abebe Getachew pointed out that the nomenclature had just changed, as both forms of “Besobla” in Ethiopia had previously been attributed to the species Ocimum basilicum. Indeed, these two “Besobla” had just been, strictly speaking, identified as ecotypes of Ocimum americanum sp. americanum and Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum – both by Alan Paton at Kew Botanic Garden, UK, and by the National Herbarium of Denmark.

This means that the ecotype of Ocimum americanum he had just analyzed may have been wrongly named “Besobla” – or that this name covers various species in certain Ethiopian regions. Indeed, according to Abebe Getachew’s chemotype of his essential oil, over two years of cultivation, it was not at all the temperate myrrh-scented Tulsi. The main components were linalool – up to 43% (in the second year) – eucalyptol, trans-geraniol and methyl cinnamate…

all compounds which, apart from eucalyptol, are not at all characteristic of the main ecotypes of temperate Tulsi, Ocimum bisabolenum.

In the course of my investigation, I then came across Paulos Cornelis Maria Jansen’s renowned 1981 work, “Spices, condiments and medicinal plants in Ethiopia, their taxonomy and agricultural significance” – which is now out of print. [49] In this book, Jansen attempts to describe what he calls the “Basobila” group – another name for the “Besobla” or “Besibola”- and refers to the fact that he discovered that some of these plants, in their second year, would vegetate and flower again.

On page 87, the botanical illustration of an Ethiopian basil specifically identifies it as an Ocimum basilicum, whereas the illustrations and descriptions seem to characterize an Ocimum americanum: the base of the gynobasic style, the shape of the calyx and the heart shape of the anthers – whereas the anthers of Ocimum basilicum are normally more reniform.

On page 109 of the essay “Reproductive Ecology of Ocimum americanum and Ocimum basilicum. Lamiaceae) in India” (1989), [52] the author, Jacob Solomon Raju Aluri, of Andhra University, presents botanical illustrations of Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum americanum which confirm Jansen’s botanical error.

Botanical illustrations of Ocimum americanum are, also, available in a few studies – including the Brazilian study, from 2008, entitled “Biologia floral e mecanismos reprodutivos de Ocimum canum.” [45]

As to the morphology of the temperate Tulsi flower, it is relatively identical to that of the Ocimum basilicum flower and to that of the Ocimum americanum flower (in its two subspecies) – as well as to that of the Ocimum kilimandsharicum flower. It’s all a question of size, amplitude – or else, question of the base of the style or the shape of the anthers.

And these last characteristics (style and anthers) are not easy to establish – even with a good macro camera… because you have to dissect to get to the base of the style. Or live in a windless area.

For the moment, I would describe, for the temperate Tulsi, an anther much less reniform than the one of Ocimum basilicum – and especially of less indentation at the junction with the stamen net. But it is, indeed, a tough issue.

Thus, from the point of view of flower morphology, I would be inclined to propose to place the temperate Tulsi in the same section Ocimum of the subgenus Ocimum of the genus Ocimum – according to Alan Paton’s classification – in very good company, therefore, of Ocimum basilicum, Ocimum americanum and Ocimum kilimandsharicum.

*Ocimum basilicum.* Photography by Xochi.

Obviously, if Jansen describes, very precisely, one of the Ethiopian Besobila forms, it is not the one we know with a very compact habit. On the other hand, the photographs offered by two spice companies in Ethiopia – mentioned earlier – show much larger plants – and with greater spacing between the whorled glomerules of mauve flowers, as described by Jansen.

What really surprised me in Jansen’s description was his assertion that the color of the anthers is white or orange (brick-red) – i.e. that the color of the pollen is white or orange (brick-red)… whereas only the red-pollen form was distributed in the Western world for almost half a century.

So I went online to investigate the Ethiopian trade. The first important clue came from the Ethiopian company Damascene Essential Oil, which marketed 10 tons of dried Besobila for the year 2021/2022 of dried Besobila – per 100 g, 250 g, 1 kg and 5 kg. [47] This dried and powdered Besobila is advertised as an Ocimum basilicum but the proposed photographs are very clear and show, without any doubt, a temperate Tulsi ecotype with mauve and white flowers and brick red pollen.

The second important clue comes from the Ethiopian company, Brundo Ethiopian Spice Company, which offers photographs of the Besobila/Bessobela (with red pollen) it markets on its Fakebook. [67] It is, strictly, the temperate Tulsi.

The third clue – not to say the third piece of evidence – discovered in September 2024, is presented by the trading company, GENA Investment Group, based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, which distributes certified organic Besobila. [32]

*Ocimum bisabolenum* distributed organically by GENA, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

It would seem that the Bisabolene trail has led us to the possible geographical source of Temperate Tulsi – namely Ethiopia!!!

Besides, isn’t it logical that such a basil with a compact habit, and with a good resistance to the cold, comes from the African regions of altitude? And part of Ethiopia is located at about 2300/2500 meters above sea level… with a temperate climate and sometimes morning frosts.

The temperate Tulsi, with red pollen, is native of the Ethiopian highlands: it is a high altitude Tulsi! «Tulsi Tulana Nasti Ataeva Tulasi».

Even today, in Ethiopia, some botanists are not embarrassed and consider “Besobela” as an Ocimum sp, i.e. not recognized as a species – both observationally and existentially.

This is the case of a 2014 Ethiopian ethnobotanical study of the West Shoa region, which considers that the denomination “Basobila” refers perhaps to three species: two wild, or half-wild, and one domesticated… which would be Ocimum basilicum. [48]

This is the case of an Ethiopian study, from 2017, “Agronomic and Bio-chemical Variability of Ethiopian Sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum) Accessions” which focuses on the description of 28 Ethiopian ecotypes – allegedly presented as Ocimum basilicum populations. [147] The authors have succeeded in never mentioning the pollen or anther color of these 28 Ethiopian ecotypes! There is only mention of internodes, leaf length, inflorescence length, and so on. If the authors had studied pollen color, they would surely have made some fascinating discoveries!

Today, if we go back to investigate the web, it is very interesting to note that the “Besobela” ecotype, commercially offered, is presented as an “Ethiopian Sacred Basil”.

However, it would seem that this “Ethiopian Sacred Basil/Besobela” participates of the same approximations, and falsehoods, as the Sacred Basil with red pollen. Indeed, on the Web, the traders in seeds of the “Ethiopian Sacred Basil/Besobela” do not present at all the same photographs.

Many sellers – such as Experimental Farm Network [4] – present an ecotype that I call identical to the one I grow this year in my garden – namely Ethiopian ecotype PI 197442 from the USDA Seed Bank. This ecotype is characterized by 61.57% linalool, 19.4% geraniol and 8% eucalyptol. It strongly resembles the variety called “Siam Queen” because it is an ecotype of Ocimum basilicum sp. thyrsiflorum – namely Thai.

The photographs in the USDA/GRIN seed bank leave no doubt as to its identity.

Moreover, our seed colleagues, from Southern Seed Exchange, USA, list an ecotype from nearby Eritrea, with characteristics reminiscent of the Ethiopian ecotype PI 197442, as being, unfortunately, an Ocimum gratissimum… which the shape of its leaves immediately invalidates. [5]

Another seller on the web – Grow Artisan – presents a photograph [6] of an ecotype whose foliage looks very similar to that of the temperate Tulsi with brick-red pollen – with a high level of bisabolene – except that it seems, according to the blurred photograph, that the pollen is white.

Addendum. In November 2023, I tracked down the origin of this form of Ocimum bisabolenum offered by Grow Artisan. It comes from the Ethiopian Menkir Tamrat, who grew and marketed Berber varieties from his native Ethiopia in Frémont, California: basil, chillies, teff, etc. Menkir Tamrat also makes two alcoholic beverages, Ethiopian and French. Menkir Tamrat also prepares two Ethiopian alcoholic beverages: “Tella” beer and “Tej” mead, made from plants of the medicinal species Rhamnus prinoides, or “Gesho”.

Menkir Tamrat arrived in California as a student in 1971. He worked as an executive at IBM, and when he was made redundant, he became a full-time farmer in 2009.

According to Menkir Tamrat, Ethiopian holy basil, Besobila, forms the backbone of Berber sauces. [135]

The “Besobela”, in addition to its immense medicinal properties, is one of the fundamental elements of Berber sauces. In addition, all parts of the “Besobela” – the leaves, flowers, fruits and tender stems – are dried, and ground into powder, to be used as condiments in the preparation of a spicy cooking butter – in addition to other condiment species. This special blend is said to increase the shelf life of this spiced butter… for up to fifteen years – without altering its flavor.

In fact, as early as October 2012, a Californian newspaper, the San Francisco Gate, revealed the Ethiopian origin of the temperate Tulsi – but nobody paid any attention, then. [135]

Perhaps, Menkir Tamrat, himself, introduced this Ethiopian Besobila when he arrived on the West Coast in 1971…

This color means that this ecotype, commercialized under the name of “Ethiopian Sacred Basil/Besobela”, is one of the temperate forms of Tulsi that originated in Ethiopia – and that recently came from Ethiopia.

When these temperate Tulsis are granted species status, they need to be characterized by two pollen colors.

This seems plausible since according to some botanists, Ocimum kilimandscharicum would be characterized, sometimes, by a grey pollen color instead of the brick red color – which characterizes the majority of ecotypes of this species. According to “Diversity of the genus Ocimum (Lamiaceae) through morpho-molecular (RAPD) and chemical (GC–MS) analysis”. [185]

***************

I am now going to present the studies published by Ethiopian scientists, which clearly highlight the existence of Ocimum bisabolenum as a species in its own right.

An Ethiopian study of March 2021, entitled “Chemotypic Characterization of Ocimum basilicum L. Essential Oils for Ethiopian Genotypes” [40], analyzed the essential oil of six Ethiopian ecotypes of Ocimum: three which are clearly ecotypes of Ocimum basilicum sp. thyrsiflorum and three ecotypes whose photographs are identical to those offered by the Grow Artisan seed company.

The first important conclusion is that these last three ecotypes have a very high level of Bisabolene: they contain, respectively, up to 45.79%, 43.92% and 27.22% of bisabolene – in the form of β-Bisabolene and (Z)-α-Bisabolene.

The 3 top photographs are definitely *Ocimum bisabolenum* while the 3 lower pictures are definitely *Ocimum basilicum sp. thyrsiflorum*.
In “Chemotypic Characterization of *Ocimum basilicum* L. Essential Oils for Ethiopian Genotypes”.

These are, of course, three ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum.

Since the original publication of this essay researchers in Ethiopia have published, in October 2022, a study entitled “Effect of Drying Methods and Drying Days on Essential Oil Content and Physicochemical Properties of Basil (Ocimum basilicum) Varieties in Ethiopia” whose objective is to study the impacts of the type of drying (full sun or shade) and the duration of drying (from 1 to 15 days) on the essential oil components of two Ethiopian Basil populations assumed to be Ocimum basilicum. [146]

However, in view of their very high bisabolene content, these can only be two populations of Ocimum bisabolenum.

It should be noted that in the first population, Bisabolene levels varied from 14.2% to 23.69%, depending on drying conditions and duration. As for the second population, it rose from 4.32% to 16.65% – a very sharp increase.

In November 2023, researchers from Ethiopia and Kenya have just published a new study entitled “The chemotypes of Ethiopian Ocimum basilicum (sweet basil) germplasms”. [140] These include Aynalem Gebre of the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research.

These researchers have genetically analyzed 49 populations of Ethiopian basil, all from Ethiopia – except OB047 and OB048, which come from Norway and Israel and contain no bisabolenes. These Ethiopian Basils are all high altitude Basils – between 1800 and 2600 meters – with the exception of two populations, OB034 and OB035 coming from a lower altitude, around 1400 meters. According to their listing:

38 populations make up group 1, containing between 9.44% and 23.03% bisabolene.

4 populations make up group 2, with bisabolene levels ranging from 8.5% to 14%.

In fact, out of 49 populations, 29 have Bisabolene as a major component.

Populations OB013, OB036, OB047, OB048 in group 3 contain no bisabolene at all – while OB015 contains only 3.22% and OB042 17.7%.

Population OB033 – from group 4 – contains no bisabolene at all.

It should also be noted that α-bisabolol is present in small quantities – with a maximum of 1.56% – in most populations. However, β-bisabolene-free populations are also α-bisabolol-free.

Strangely, these researchers assigned a “eugenol/estragole/eucalyptol/ β-bisabolene” chemotype to the first group, while the second group also contains a high proportion of β-bisabolene… while stating that «β-bisabolene was the dominant compound in almost all accessions analyzed, except in five accessions (OB033, OB036, OB013, OB048 and OB047).»

The four proposed photographs – intended to illustrate the four genetic groups – clearly highlight the difference between these 4 groups.

The top two photographs, illustrating the first two groups containing Bisabolenum, clearly show Ocimum bisabolenum in two forms: one with white pollen and the other with brick-red pollen.

The two lower photographs clearly indicate that these are Thai-type basils – namely Ocimum basilicum sp. thyrsiflorum – with its classic chemotypes “linalool”, “geraniol” and “methyl cinnamate”… which have nothing to do with the “Bisabolene” chemotype. In Ethiopia, these Thai-type Basils are called “Ajuban” or “Ashkuti”.

This means, presumably, that the OB042 population – which contains 17.7% bisabolene – has not been placed correctly, from a genetic point of view, as a result of some mistake.

The authors suggest that there may be interspecific cross-breeding – to explain the high variability they are witnessing in Ethiopia. There is certainly a great deal of intra-specific variability in Ocimum basilicum.

Notwithstanding, I have already ruled out the possibility of an Ethiopian Ocimum basilicum crossing with an Ethiopian Ocimum bisabolenum – for, in over 40 years of seed production, there has never been the slightest hint of interspecific hybridization involving Ocimum bisabolenum, the temperate Tulsi of Ethiopia – at any of the seed companies that have promoted this “Sacred Basil”.

*Ocimum bisabolenum* seed production, in Ariège, at Kokopelli’s seed production farm, November 2, 2017. Photography by Xochi.

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By the way, what are the main constituents of the essential oils in the various ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum? Is there a great diversity, or just a variation in their respective terpene levels?

In addition to Bisabolenes… whose level can reach 52% in Ocimum bisabolenum.

In order to discover the answers to these questions, I have reviewed over twenty studies authentically analyzing Ocimum bisabolenum – despite what the authors wrongly claim – for several dozen ecotypes.

The major and/or virtually permanent components of Ocimum bisabolenum – i.e., in addition to the Bisabolenes – are undoubtedly Eugenol, Estragole, Eucalyptol/1,8-Cineole, β-Caryophyllene and α-Bergamotene.

These various major components are confirmed by the 2023 study “The chemotypes of Ethiopian Ocimum basilicum (sweet basil) germplasms” [140] for the majority of the 42 Ethiopian populations of Ocimum bisabolenum – with a Bisabolene chemotype.

Other recurrent components of Ocimum bisabolenum are: Methyl cinnamate, α-Cadinene, Camphor, γ-Elemene, α-Humulene, Germacrene, β-Ocimene – with, in some cases, very low levels of Citral, α-Bisabolol, Linalool, Neral, β-Pinene, Myrcene, α-Terpineol, β-Copaene.

*Ocimum bisabolenum.* Pollination vector in a temperate Tulsi flower. Photograph by Xochi.

Bisabolenes in other species of Ocimum… or botanical misidentifications?

There are three Ethiopian studies that claim to have discovered other Ethiopian ecotypes of Ocimum with high levels of Bisabolene in their essential oil. However, in the course of writing this essay, and in the course of discovering numerous botanical errors in studies published in scientific journals, I have some reservations about the real identification of these ecotypes.

It is true that these botanical errors do not invalidate the conclusions of these studies… but they do invalidate the subject.

For example, one study, from 2017, highlighted 29.52% β-bisabolene followed by 14.57% caryophyllene, 14.29% elemicin and 11.45% germacrene D., in a local ecotype of Ocimum lamiifolium. [46]

I have not found any other mentions of bisabolene, in the essential oil of other ecotypes of Ocimum lamiifolium – but concede that studies are few regarding this species.

Indeed, according to the very recent 2023 study “Sub-chronic toxicity of the aqueous leaf extract of Ocimum lamiifolium Hochst. ex Benth on biochemical parameters and histopathology of liver and kidney in rats: in vivo and in-silico toxicity studies” [145], the major constituents of Ocimum lamiifolium essential oil are bornyl acetate, p-cymene, camphene, a-pinene and sabinene.

For example, the 2007 study, “Composition, antimicrobial and free-radical scavenging properties of the essential oil of Damakese (Ocimum lamiifolium): A popular home remedy in Ethiopia”, makes no mention of the presence of bisabolene in an Ethiopian ecotype of Ocimum lamiifolium, whose chemotype is “Sabinene” – at 31.28%. [136]

For example, according to the 2007 study “Variability in the Chemical Compositions of the Essential Oils of Five Ocimum Species from Tropical African Area”, the Cameroon ecotype of Ocimum lamiifolium has a “Sabinene” chemotype – up to 33.8%. [148]

For example, according to the 2017 study, “Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of leave extract of Ocimum lamiifolium (Damakese) as a treatment for urinary tract infection”, the Ethiopian ecotype of Ocimum lamiifolium has a “Linalool/1-octen-3-yl-npropionate” chemotype. [138]

For example, according to the 2010 study, “Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity of the essential oils of four Ocimum species growing in Tanzania”, the Tanzanian ecotype of Ocimum lamiifolium has a “bornyl acetate/p-Cymene” chemotype. [150]

In conclusion, this Ethiopian ecotype of Ocimum lamiifolium – with 29.52% β-bisabolene – is definitely an ecotype of Ocimum bisabolenum.

For example, one study, from 2016, highlighted 10% α-bisabolene followed by 22% α-pinene, 21% eugenol, 11% α-cubebene, etc, in an Ethiopian ecotype of Ocimum urticifolium – namely Ocimum suave and, now, Ocimum gratissimum sp. gratissimum. [99]

Thus, a study, from 2003, highlighted a level of 19.02% of β-bisabolene followed by 14.05% of β-caryophyllene, in the essential oil of the flowers of an Ethiopian ecotype of Ocimum urticifolium – namely Ocimum suave and, now, Ocimum gratissimum sp. gratissimum. [41]

According to these studies, the analyzed ecotypes of Ocimum gratissimum sp. gratissimum grow naturally in the highlands of Ethiopia – i.e. at 2200/2300 meters altitude.

Wouldn’t there be a problem of identification, at least for these two last analyzed ecotypes, because, normally, in Africa, Ocimum gratissimum sp. gratissimum thrives between 400 and 1600 meters of altitude?

It must be pointed out again that the temperature can be cold on these Ethiopian highlands. If the temperate Tulsi resists a few degrees below 0°C, it is probably not the same for Ocimum gratissimum sp. gratissimum which is a much more tropical species.

I have the same cautious reservations with regard to a “eugenol/bisabolene” chemotype, of Ocimum kilimandscharicum, which was identified in India, in Lucknow, with 32% eugenol, 15.4% β-bisabolene and 10.9% (E)-α-bisabolene – in addition to 10.2% estragol and 8.2% eucalyptol.. [15]

The question arises again whether this is not a botanical misidentification because Ocimum kilimandscharicum, like temperate Tulsi, has a brick red pollen, strong aromas, resistance to cold, a predilection for highlands and a perennial nature … And this, especially since this study was conducted in Uttarakhand, the same region where local chemotypes of temperate Tulsi have been analyzed, in several studies, instead of Ocimum americanum.

This is clearly an ecotype of Ocimum bisabolenum.

The same is true of 4 ecotypes of Ocimum kilimandscharicum, which have been identified in India – in Uttarakhand between 1100 and 2000 meters altitude. Indeed, according to the 2013 study “Exploring compositional diversity in the essential oils of 34 Ocimum taxa from Indian flora” [143], these 4 ecotypes of Ocimum kilimandscharicum are characterized, respectively, by 8.5%, 4.5%, 22.9% and 14.7% β-bisabolene and 6.7%, 3.0%, 10.9% and 9.0% (E)-α-bisabolene.

The question of botanical misidentification no longer arises, since these Bisabolene levels are very high and, moreover – unfortunately for the authors of this study – their description of these 4 ecotypes is similar and, above all, they propose photographs that clearly correspond to Ocimum bisabolenum – while claiming that this is the first time such bisabolene levels have been identified in Ocimum kilimandscharicum.

Thus, it is clear that the 5 ecotypes of Ocimum kilimandscharicum, growing at mid-altitude in India, which are characterized by very high levels of Bisabolene, are definitely ecotypes of Ocimum bisabolenum.

Furthermore, the same study identifies an ecotype of Ocimum basilicum with 25.6% Bisabolene – from Khatima, Uttarakhand – which clearly corresponds to Ocimum bisabolenum… especially as a proposed photograph clearly highlights this. [143]

As for the presence of Bisabolene – real because minimal – in Ocimum kilimandscharicum, a study, from Kenya, from 2020, presents two ecotypes, one of which has 3.32% β-bisabolene and the other with 1.82% β-bisabolene and 0.76% α-bisabolene – following the analysis of the volatile compounds of its smoke. [117]

To conclude this topic, elements of the Bisabolene group have been identified, at lower levels, in a number of varieties of Ocimum basilicum or ecotypes of Ocimum americanum.

Thus, in 2020, CIMAP registered a new variety of Ocimum basilicum, named “CIM Sukhda” – developed for South Indian agriculture – with an oil content of 0.53% and a productivity of 105 kg per hectare. Its chemotype is “linalool”, at about 80%, with about 4% bisabolene, and as much citral, as major compounds.

This variety was obtained from the discovery in 2013 of a natural hybrid in a crop of Ocimum basilicum, Ocimum americanum sp. americanum and Ocimum americanum sp. pilosum. [27]

According to the pharmacological literature, bisabolene has also been identified in a “limonene” chemotype of Ocimum basilicum from Cameroon (N-bisabolene at 0.3%); in a very “lemony” ecotype, at 85%, from “New Guinea” (cis-α-bisabolene at 3.8%); in an ecotype of Ocimum x. citriodorum – at 11% [13]; in the variety “Lime” (at 8.9%) and in the variety “Lemon” (at 10%).

In Thailand, in 2007, with 1.91% (Z)-α-Bisabolene in an ecotype of Ocimum americanum. [107]

It has been identified – in very small levels of about 1% – in some commercial varieties of Ocimum basilicum such as Dark Opal, Purple Ruffles, Green Ruffles, Mammoth, Cinnamon, Thai.

In conclusion, at this point in my investigations, I have found six studies identifying bisabolene, in essential oils of the species Ocimum gratissimum, which seem to be trustworthy as to their botanical identification.

In Cameroon, Bali, in 2012, an ecotype of Ocimum gratissimum sp. gratissimum was analyzed with 21.6% β-bisabolene – 33% eugenol and 18% elemicin. [100]

In Cameroon, in Battak in 2022, an ecotype of Ocimum gratissimum sp. gratissimum was analyzed with 19.10% β-bisabolene. [110]

In Cameroon in 2016, an ecotype of Ocimum gratissimum sp. gratissimum was analyzed with a Eugenol/Bisabolene chemotype. [111]

In Brazil, an ecotype of Ocimum gratissimum (leaves) was analyzed, in 2012, with 73% eugenol and 18.3% β-bisabolene. This ecotype has been the subject of two analyses involving anesthesia in Rhamdia quelen fish. [101] [109]

In Brazil, an ecotype of Ocimum gratissimum (leaves) was analyzed, in 2005, with 57.82% eugenol and 17.19% (Z)-α- bisabolene. This ecotype was the subject of analysis for its fungicidal activity against Cryptococcus neoformans. [113]

In India, in Uttarakhand, an ecotype of Ocimum gratissimum sp. gratissimum was analyzed with 29.52% β-bisabolene – in addition to 11.33% estragol and 9.75% eucalyptol. [114]

In Congo, in 2006, an ecotype of Ocimum gratissimum was analyzed with a Thymol chemotype of 72.3% and a bisabolene content of 6.8%. [148]

And, also, at very small levels of Bisabolene, in various ecotypes of Ocimum gratissimum. In Benin with 0.73% of β-bisabolene. [115] In India, in Andra Pradesh, with 0.10% β-bisabolene. [116] In Kenya with 0.74% β-bisabolene. [112]

Bisabolene is also present in other, lesser-known Ocimum species.

For example, in Ocimum ciliatum according to the study “Changes in composition and essential oil yield of Ocimum ciliatum at different phenological stages” [155] and “Chemical composition and yield of essential oil from two Iranian species of basil (Ocimum ciliatum and Ocimum basilicum)”. [156]

For example, in Ocimum campechianum, according to the study “Evaluación del aceite asencial extraído de dos especies de albahaca: comercial (Ocimum basilicum L) y silvestre (Ocimum campechianum Mill) aplicado a soporte de papel patrimonial. Aspectos químicos y microbiológicos”. The Ocimum campechianum ecotype analyzed contained 18.11% α-bisabolene. [172]

Medicinal Properties of the Ethiopian Tulsi and Bisabolenes

When it comes to the medicinal properties of Ethiopian Tulsi, Ocimum bisabolenum, as a Master Medicinal Plant – with all its active ingredients…

… namely the famous “entourage effect”

According to an Ethiopian study, mentioned above, [50] the anti-oxidant activity of temperate Tulsi is very strong… and this explains its ability to preserve spiced butter for about fifteen years.

It is necessary, however, to specify that the temperate Tulsi is not the only medicinal/aromatic plant. Some Ethiopian ethnic groups use a dozen species for spiced butter and fifteen species for ghee – clarified butter… which can be kept forever. See the study, from 2005, “Radical scavenging activity of volatile oils of herbs traditionally used to spice cooking butter in Ethiopia”, which states that it is Basil that is the major preservative in this clarified butter – while identifying it as Ocimum basilicum var. purpurascens. [139]

This butter is called “Niter kibbeh” (ንጥር ቅቤ), in Aramique and, also, “Tesmi”, in Tigriña (another Chamito-Semitic language).

For example, in the West Showa districts of Ethiopia, here are some of the species used in the composition of these butters: Nigella (Nigella sativa), Turmeric (Curcuma domestica), Cinnamon (Cinnamomum verum), Coriander (Coriandrum sativum), Fenugreek (Trigonella foenum), Garlic (Allium sativum), Ginger (Zingiber officinale), African Cardamom (Aframomum angustifolium), Ammi (Trachyspermum ammi), Black pepper (Piper nigrum), Koseret (Lippia abyssinica)…

In addition to Ocimum bisabolenum “Besobila”, the species used to make Ethiopian clarified butter in the eastern Shoa region of Ethiopia are: Allium ursinum, Aframomum angustifolium, Coriandrum sativum, Curcuma longa, Eugenia caryophylla, Mentha piperita, Nigella sativa, Satujera sp.,Trachyspermum copticum, Trigonella foenum-graecum, Zingiber officinale. [31]

Not only does black pepper (Piper nigrum) contain high levels of bisabolene, but so do other species in the genus: in Peru, for example, in Piper tuberculatum and Piper coruscans.

It should also be noted that some of these species are renowned for their high Bisabolene content… the major chemotype of Ocimum bisabolenum. The same applies to black pepper (Piper nigrum) [142], turmeric (Curcuma sps.) [144], cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) [5], black cumin (Nigella sativa) [137], cinnamon (Cinnamomum sps.) [141], ginger (Zingiber officinale)…

In fact, the botanical basis of spiced and clarified butter from the Ethiopian high highlands is Bisabolene plants.

According to a very technical Indian study, mentioned above, [72] the anti-oxidant, and anti-inflammatory, activity of temperate Tulsi is very strong.

This study also mentions Mohsen Kazemi’s 2014 study that highlighted the strong antioxidant activity of β-bisabolene. [73]

See, too, the 2022 study, “Identification of the Aroma Compounds of Ocimum americanum as a Function of Growth Stages and their In Vitro Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Potential”, [72] which analyzed the strong anti-inflammatory potential of Ocimum bisabolenum – thinking it was analyzing an ecotype of Ocimum americanum.

It should be noted that, according to the above-mentioned Serbian study, temperate Tulsi, under the name “Blue Spice”, has the highest antioxidant capacity (IC50 = 0.03 µg/mL) of the 12 varieties analyzed. Its essential oil content, on the other hand, is the lowest with, only, 0,65% – while the variety Purple Opal contained 1,90%. Various analyses have mentioned the low productivity in essential oil of this Tulsi.

In this study, the antioxidant activity of this form of temperate Tulsi, under the name “Blue Spice”, is mainly due to its high level of β-bisabolene, eugenol and trans-α-bisabolene.

*Ocimum bisabolenum.* *Even the caterpillars know that the red pollen, from the temperate Tulsi, is an aphrodisiac tonic!*

A Serbian study, from July 2014, determined the mineral composition of 13 ecotypes of Basil. According to this study, the “Spice” ecotype (of chemotype “Bisabolene”) possessed the second place for iron with 1507 mg/kg – the highest at 3576 mg/kg (“Greek”) and the lowest at 202 mg/kg. [41] It was the “Lettuce Leaf” variety that was in third place with 1126 mg/kg.

This ecotype “Spice” fixed very little lead but, on the other hand, fixed very easily chromium, cadmium, nickel. It is preferable to grow this Tulsi in organic gardening because it is a necro-accumulator species – like all Tulsis. It accumulates poisons from the agricultural industry (and others), in all its tissues, except, allegedly, in the compounds of its essential oil – according to what the perfume industry says… which is very convenient, especially for themselves.

It’s true that all these necro-accumulating and bio-remediating species have strong capacities to metabolize and deactivate industrial toxins. However, this is not a good enough reason to eat them blissfully.

A June 2020 study determined the carotenoid content of the flowers of three Basilics: 51.59µg/g for the “Blue Spice” ecotype; 68.33µg/g for the “Cinnamon” variety; 81.86µg/g for the “Thai Lemon” variety – in fresh weight. [7] It also determined their anthocyanin content: 0.16 mg ME/g for the “Blue Spice” ecotype; 0.06 mg ME/g for the “Cinnamon” variety; 0.03 mg ME/g for the “Thai Lemon” variety – fresh weight.

The anti-bacterial activity of Blue Spice has been validated against: Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes, Micrococcus flavus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella typhimurium, Escherichia coli, Enterococcus faecalis.[11]

According to this Serbian study, Blue Spice was the most active Basil, of the twelve analyzed, against the following bacteria: Bacillus cereus, Micrococcus flavus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Salmonella typhimurium.

The anti-fungal activity of Blue Spice has been validated against: Aspergillus fumigatus, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus versicolor, Aspergillus ochraceus, Penicillium funiculosum, Penicillium ochrochloron and Trichoderma viride. [11]

According to the 2003 study by Alan Paton et al. entitled “Chemical profiling of Ocimum americanum using external flavonoids” – which analyzed 111 Ocimum ecotypes – the three Ocimum americanum ecotypes cultivated by Vieira and Simon (1997) were of the “Nevadensin/Salvigenin” phenotype in terms of their major flavonoids. [87] A temperate Tulsi ecotype was one of the three Ocimum americanum ecotypes cultivated by Vieira and Simon.

We can therefore deduce that, in 1997, this temperate Tulsi ecotype had a “Bisabolene” chemotype for its essential oil, and a “Nevadensin/Salvigenin” chemotype for its flavonoids.

Nevadensin has hypotensive, anti-tumor, anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-tubercular, anti-allergic, anti-microbial and anti-leishmanial properties. [95] [96] [97]

Nevadensine is also a potent inhibitor of human carboxylesterase. [94]

Salvigenin has anti-tumoral [93], anti-nociceptive, anxiolytic, anti-depressant, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory, analgesic [90] and trypanocidal properties. [92]

Salvigenin is also a powerful inhibitor of type A monoamine oxidase enzyme activity [88] and a leukotriene inhibitor. [89]

Unfortunately, salvigenin is also the subject of insane research to create nano-technological compounds involving it and iron oxide… in order to improve, allegedly, its therapeutic potential against breast cancer. [91]

***************

As regards the medicinal properties of Bisabolenes – in their various forms: they possess cytotoxic, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, anti-paludic, anti-hyperglycemic, anti-hypertensive, hepato-protective, nephro-protective, anti-epileptic, anti-atherosclerotic activity…

According to the scientific literature, and the in vitro and in vivo studies it reports, the most frequently reported pharmacological properties of Bisabolene-type sesquiterpenoids are antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and cytotoxic.

It is, in fact, because of their high Bisabolene content that certain Master Medicinal Plants have been used, traditionally, by Peoples – since the dawn of time.

These Bisabolene Master Medicinal Plants include: Matricaria (Matricaria recutita), Immortelle (Helichrysum italicum), Lemon (Citrus limon), Origans (Origanum sp. ), Black Pepper (Piper nigrum) [142], Turmeric (Curcuma sps.) [144], Cardamom (Elettaria cardamomum) [5], Nigella (Nigella sativa) [137], Cinnamon (Cinnamomum sps.) [141], Ginger (Zingiber officinale)…

Immortelle (Helichrysum italicum) is reputed, among other benefits, for its anti-epileptic activity. Some of its ecotypes may contain 20% β-bisabolene in their essential oil.

Bisabolenes, for example, are known to be cytotoxic against a large number of cancers.

A 2015 study entitled “β-Bisabolene, a Sesquiterpene from the Essential Oil Extract of Opoponax (Commiphora guidottii), Exhibits Cytotoxicity in Breast Cancer Cell Lines” highlighted the anti-carcinogenic properties of β-Bisabolene, a Myrtle extract, against breast cancer. [17]

According to the conclusions of this study, from 2015: «In summary, we have identified an anticancer agent from opoponax essential oil that exhibits specific cytotoxicity to human and murine breast tumor cells in vitro and in vivo, warranting further investigation of the use of β-bisabolene in the treatment of breast cancers.»

A 2022 study, “Chlorinated bisabolene sesquiterpenoids from the whole plant of Parasenecio rubescens”, discovered four new, highly medicinal bisabolene terpenoids in Parasenecio rubescens. [4]

According to the findings of this study, the anti-carcinogenic potential of Bisabolene, extracted from Parasenecio rubescens – an Asteraceae native to China – against breast cancer, liver cancer and melanoma, as well as its anti-bacterial potential against Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Monilia albicans.

Bisabolene’s anti-bacterial activity had already been validated against Staphylococcus aureus in an earlier study in 2007 [18].

A 2015 study entitled “Quantitative phosphoproteomic analysis reveals γ-bisabolene inducing p53-mediated apoptosis of human oral squamous cell carcinoma via HDAC2 inhibition and ERK1/2 activation” highlighted γ-Bisabolene’s medicinal potential against human oral squamous cell carcinoma. [5]

Thus, a study, from 2016, “Anticancer Activity of γ-Bisabolene in Human Neuroblastoma Cells via Induction of p53-Mediated Mitochondrial Apoptosis” highlighted the medicinal capabilities of γ-Bisabolene against human Neuroblastoma. [6]

A 2012 study entitled “Comparative study of the chemical composition and biological activities of Magnolia grandiflora and Magnolia virginiana flower essential oils” highlighted the fact that the essential oils of certain ecotypes of these two species possess cytotoxic activity against lung and breast cancers – due to their major components: β-bisabolene and germacrene D. [134]

Thus, in 2022, a study validated the anti-carcinogenic potential of Xanthorrhizol, a sesquiterpenoid of the Bisabolene type isolated from Java Curcuma, Curcuma xanthorrhiza, against cancers of the breast, cervix, colon, liver, lung, mouth, esophagus and skin. Moreover, this study has described its other pharmacological activities: anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial and anti-diabetic, in addition to a protective effect on several organs. [32]

*Ocimum bisabolenum.* Temperate Tulsi with a spicy vanilla and myrrh fragrance… and brick-red pollen. Seeds. Photography by Xochi.

A study, of 2015, had already declined, precisely, the anti-microbial anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory, estrogenic, anti-estrogenic, anti-hyperglicemic, anti-hypertensive, hepato-protective, nephro-protective activities of this Bisabolene. [36]

Thus, in 2015, new sesquiterpenoids, of the Bisabolene type, were isolated from the roots of the climbing Ylang-Ylang, Artabotrys hexapetalus. Their cytotoxic activity has been validated against various types of cancer: colon, liver, ovary, lung, stomach. [28]

Thus, in 2015, a study highlighted the cyto-toxic activity of γ-bisabolene against squamous cell carcinoma. [34]

Here are a few more studies highlighting bisabolene’s other medicinal activities:

In 2012, a study highlighted the anti-seizure activity of sesquiterpenoids, of the Bisabolene type, isolated from a species of Curcuma, Curcuma longa. [31] Their anti-epileptic activity was confirmed by a 2021 systemic review entitled “Mechanism of Curcuma longa and Its Neuroactive Components for the Management of Epileptic Seizures: A Systematic Review.” [33]

Immortelle (Helichrysum italicum) is known, among other benefits, for its anti-convulsant activity. Some of its ecotypes may contain 20% β-bisabolene in their essential oil.

In March 2023, a study highlighted the anti-atherosclerotic activity of sesquiterpenoids, of the Bisabolene type, also isolated from Curcuma longa. [144]

In July 2023, a study highlighted the anti-adipogenic activity of β-bisabolene extracted from Himalayan Mint, Colquhounia coccinea – of the Lamiaceae Family. [161]

In January 2007, for example, a study highlighted the anti-bacterial activity of β-bisabolene against strains of Staphylococcus aureus resistant to the antibiotic ampicillin. [152]

At the height of hypocrisy, these researchers attribute to β-bisabolene the ability to reinforce inoperative ampicillin instead of using, directly, β-bisabolene whose anti-bacterial capacities, against resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus, are no longer to be proven.

If we refer to the 2016 study “Antimicrobial Activity of Tulsi (Ocimum tenuiflorum) Essential Oil and Their Major Constituents against Three Species of Bacteria” [98], whose ecotype is, supposedly, and wrongly, an Ocimum tenuiflorum with over 27% bisabolene in its flowering tops… so, in reality, an Ocimum bisabolenum: this ecotype has strong antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus (including resistant strains), Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

The 2021 study “Anti-Inflammatory Potential of the Oleoresin from the Amazonian Tree Copaifera reticulata with an Unusual Chemical Composition in Rats” highlighted the highly anti-inflammatory properties of β-bisabolene extracted from Copaiba oil. [157]

Resistance of Ethiopian Tulsi to Basil Blight, Peronospora belbahrii

A 2014 study entitled “Morphological Characteristics and Susceptibility of Basil Species and Cultivars to Peronospora belbahrii” found that the ecotypes named “Spice”, “Blue Spice” – and even “Blue Spice F1” which is no longer offered commercially and which was, for sure, a fake hybrid F1 – are not very susceptible to Basil blight, which has been causing disasters in vegetable growers all over the world for a number of years, and all the more so because of the extreme fragility of the entire agricultural system based on chemical fertilizers and biocides. [19]

In this study, there was strictly no sporulation of downy mildew in these three “Spice” ecotypes.

In this study, the researchers were looking for a correlation between the susceptibility to mildew of basil and the number of stomata per square millimeter. Thus, the non-susceptible ecotypes “Spice”, “Blue Spice”, and “Blue Spice F1” were characterized by 117, 107, and 101 stomata per square millimeter, respectively – three times less than the types with the maximum number of stomata.

Furthermore, it seems established that oval-shaped stomata – which characterize “Spice”, “Blue Spice”, and lemon ecotypes – are much less susceptible, if at all, to Peronospora belbahrii… compared to types with rounded stomata.

The already mentioned 2015 Israeli study entitled “Resistance against Basil Downy Mildew in Ocimum species” [29] also highlighted the low susceptibility of the ecotypes “Spice” and “Blue Spice”, to Peronospora belbahrii.

According to this study, which deals with 113 accessions of Ocimum, the scores, of resistance, of the ecotypes “Spice” and “Blue Spice”, are, respectively, 0.15 and 0.30 – on the scale of 0 to 4. It should be noted, also, that, according to this study, the ecotypes “Spice” and “Blue Spice” are not determined specifically but “Ocimum sp.”

In fact, the resistance of the “Spice” and “Blue Spice” ecotypes has been identified in several studies [37] and as early as 2010 – for example, by McGrath et al. in the study entitled “Susceptibility of Basil Cultivars and Breeding Lines to Downy Mildew.” [22] The photograph on page 1417 of the September 2010 issue of HortScience clearly shows the brick-red color of their pollen.

In this study, the lemon ecotypes – “Sweet Dani”, “Lemon”, “Lime” and “Mrs Burn” – as well as the Ocimum basilicum varieties “Red Rubin” and “Sweet Aden”, were assessed as low susceptibility.

Thus, due to its total resistance to Basil blight, the “Spice” ecotype, according to a 2018 study, was used to create hybrids with Ocimum basilicum, some of which were resistant… but sterile. [23]

The researchers of this study also crossed the ecotype “Kivumbasi Lime”, and an ecotype of Ocimum kilimandsharicum, with Ocimum basilicum… with no more success because the inter-specific hybrids were sterile.

It was, also, used, in 2014, as an Ocimum americanum species, in an experiment-along with Ocimum basilicum and Ocimum x. citriodorum-whose objective was to discern whether susceptibility to downy mildew begins to occur at cotyledon emergence. [51]

«Tulsi Tulana Nasti Ataeva Tulasi».

Tulsi is Incomparable… in the sense that she cannot be compared to anything else. Because of this attribute, she is a manifestation of the Heavenly Mother on Earth.

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Ethiopia is the source of the temperate Tulsi with its spicy scent of vanilla and myrrh… and red pollen – Ocimum bisabolenum

Summary

Addendum of September 21, 2024

Communiqué. November 19 th, 2023

Declaration of Intention with regard to the Tulsi of Ethiopia, Ocimum bisabolenum

A Temperate Tulsi of Unknown Origins

About the temperate Tulsi ecotypes, with red pollen, listed as Ocimum tenuiflorum in the USDA seed bank, by scientists… or by Western seed companies

About the temperate Tulsi ecotypes, with red pollen, listed as Ocimum americanum in North America and Asia

A Tempered Tulsi with spicy, woody, myrrh scents… in Bisabolene mode

Bissabol, Bissa Bol and Bisabolenes

Abundance of Bisabolenes in Ethiopian Sacred Basil: the temperate Tulsi, with its red pollen, is of Ethiopian origin

Bisabolenes in other species of Ocimum… or botanical misidentifications?

Medicinal Properties of the Ethiopian Tulsi and Bisabolenes

Resistance of Ethiopian Tulsi to Basil Blight, Peronospora belbahrii

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Summary

Addendum of September 21, 2024

Communiqué. November 19 th, 2023

Declaration of Intention with regard to the Tulsi of Ethiopia, Ocimum bisabolenum

A Temperate Tulsi of Unknown Origins

About the temperate Tulsi ecotypes, with red pollen, listed as Ocimum tenuiflorum in the USDA seed bank, by scientists… or by Western seed companies

About the temperate Tulsi ecotypes, with red pollen, listed as Ocimum americanum in North America and Asia

A Tempered Tulsi with spicy, woody, myrrh scents… in Bisabolene mode

Bissabol, Bissa Bol and Bisabolenes

Abundance of Bisabolenes in Ethiopian Sacred Basil: the temperate Tulsi, with its red pollen, is of Ethiopian origin

Bisabolenes in other species of Ocimum… or botanical misidentifications?

Medicinal Properties of the Ethiopian Tulsi and Bisabolenes

Resistance of Ethiopian Tulsi to Basil Blight, Peronospora belbahrii

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