Buddleja alternifolia, known as alternate-leaved butterfly-bush, is endemic to Kansu, China, where it grows along river banks in thickets at elevations of 1,500 – 4,000 m. First described and named by Carl Maximowicz in 1880, the plant was not introduced to cultivation until 1915, by Purdom and Farrer. B. alternifolia was accorded the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit (record 674) in 1993.