Phormium

Summer has a lot to offer at Brodick Castle Garden, but at this time of year, there are the special delights that summer visitors don't see, such as the beautiful hydrangeas and this amazing plant.

A Castle Gardener tells me it's a Phormium, but my RHS encyclopaedia doesn't seem to describe the variety exactly; it's about 8 feet tall, has brilliant yellow and orange flowers in summer and its leaves are green. Thought you might like a more distant shot too.

Since writing the above I have searched the Net: it seems to be Phormium Tenax which has a variety of flower colours including what I have seen on this. Its popular name is New Zealand Flax