Buddleja lanata is a species endemic to Ecuador where it grows on dry, windy plateaux amid grasses and bracken at elevations of 1,150 - 2,700 m.[1] The species, first named and described by Bentham in 1845[2] is now threatened by habitat loss.
Buddleja lanata is a dioecious shrub or subshrub, 0.5 - 1 m high with greyish bark at the base. The stems are terete and lanate, bearing leaves on petioles 0.5 - 2 cm long. The leaves are ovate, 7 - 10 cm long by 4 - 7.5 cm wide, lanate on both sides. The yellow inflorescences have a strong fragrance, and are typically 10 - 25 cm long, comprising 5 - 10 pairs of pedunculate heads in the axils of the reduced terminal leaves. The heads are 1.2 - 1.5 cm in diameter, each with 20 - 25 flowers; the corollas 3.5 - 4.5 mm long, males more open at the throat.[1]
The shrub is not known to be in cultivation.