Harlayne is an excellent choice for a low-maintenance, cold-hardy apricot. It is productive, cold hardy to -34 (the most winter-hardy of the Harrow Series), late blooming, and late harvest (about 17 days after Harcot). It is resistant to brown rot, perennial canker, and bacterial spot. This tree is not self-fertile and a second late-blooming variety is required as a pollenizer: Harogem, Hargrand, and Jerseycot are all suitable partners.

The fruit is freestone, medium sized, very firm, with an attractive red blush. It is a high-quality apricot, and it does not tend to cracking. Thinning is recommended for optimal fruit size.

As Bob Purvis explains in Pomona, Fall 2006: "The earliest apricots brought to North America were mostly from Spain and similar Mediterranean climates, and they did not include the genes for a broader range of climatic adaptability. Modern breeders have sought out germplasm in many places, including central Asia where the apricot is thought to have originated." One such breeding program is based in Harrow, Ontario, and it has produced the "Harrow Series" of cold-hardy apricots that are suitable for New York and New England. Harlayne was released by this program in 1980, and it is, I assume, named for its developer, Dr. Layne.