So you want evergreen? Conifers don't drop leave, but they do drop needles. All trees drop at least something -- whether it's leaves, spent blooms, pine cones, or seed/fruit. Do you want something conical in shape? or more spreading?

How about a nice Asian persimmon tree? You can benefit from the fruit! But they do drop leaves, of course. Of course it may not get large enough for you. And they do not grow fast.

Most super-fast growing trees do not stop growing at a certain height. They get huge and wood is weak. I'm afraid you might have some unreal expectations.

Also, deer can't feed on them once they outgrow their size, so no worries there. But you may have to protect them until that happens.

If conical is OK, you might consider Cryptomeria.

Other options might be Cercidiphyllum japonicum (Katsura tree). And I'm a sucker for a nice big Japanese maple.

We actually did have a persimmon tree before but it died in winter. I actually want something that deer won't eat even if the tree is still small. I don't mind needles or cones, I just don't want leaves.

Would a green giant arborvitae work? I'm just worried about the deer eating it

So far the Japanese apricot looks fine as far as can be seen using only the distant photo provided. If it is not grafted on an incompatible root-stock then I see no reason to assume it is going to die anytime soon.

Conifers are usually not considered "shade trees" - deciduous trees with a largish spreading canopy are typically classified under that category :-) "A shade tree is any tree grown specifically for its shade. This term usually applies to large trees with spreading canopies. Some of the most popular shade trees in temperate countries are oaks, maples, ashes, lindens, and elms." So leaves and shade trees typically go hand in hand. And the katsura is also an excellent choice for that purpose!! The Green Giants, while fast growing, will not provide much of a shade presence. Deer do tend to avoid them but they are NOT Japanese in origin, although they do have some Japanese parentage. The cryptomeria is also a reasonable choice but again, not a big shade producer.

No but the prunus mume won't live my whole lifetime would it? I'm 22 now and I still have another 70 years to live(assuming I'm healthy lol) and the prunus mume will definitely not live that long.

I also like the idea of Katsura tree but are they deer resistant? And fast growing?

Btw I absolutely hate oaks, big maples, ashes, beech and all those native gigantic deciduous trees so none of that

And embothrium, here is an old thread I posted about my prunus mume. I posted pics of the tree bark. Can't tell if it's grafted or not.

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/4105676/is-my-japanese-plum-tree-dying

know it doesn't originate from japan, but acer platanoides 'royal red' would add a nice pop of color

Actually I've decided to get a pinus thunbergii specimen and plant it there next spring. It gets to 40 ft tall so in 10 years(I speculate thats how long until the prunus mume lives) the Japanese black pine should be big enough to provide shade

Not sure how much shade that it will provide. Doesn't have a very dense canopy.

European Beech, European Oak, Douglas Fir

Japanese elm, or hybrid elm

One thing to consider about Hinoki cypress is that its pollen can potentially contribute to allergy issues, although the wood does smell beautiful. If you have enough room for the roots, maybe a camphor tree, they have very aromatic leaves. Ancient camphor trees are venerated at several temples in Japan.

Picea glehnii and Abies sachalinensis are both native Japanese evergreens.

Japanese Black pine (Pinus thunbergii ) is very shapely, but may be vulnerable to disease in America. Japanese Red pine (Pinus densiflora ) is very common in Japanese forests.

Thanks I will definitely look into that

"Btw I absolutely hate oaks, big maples, ashes, beech and all those native gigantic deciduous trees so none of that"

Okay. Why?

What about ginkgo biloba?

Because they are such a nuisance. They do nothing but get gigantic and there is always a risk of big tree branches falling anywhere, the amount of leaves they drop in the fall is so annoying they cover up all my other plants and practically make my garden lose its appeal, they don't even bloom(or insignificant blooms that causes allergies!), they always seed or sucker itself creating more of those gigantic pests-especially ash trees, I consider them to be invasive. Proven by a 30 feet opportunistic ash tree growing in my forsythia hedge! and bunch of other small ones I still have to remove. A lot of maple seedlings and I just removed two 10 feet maple tree the other day that was growing in my forsythia hedge. Oaks drop acorns and thats so annoying because that means more squirrels and chipmunks which are pests themselves in my garden for various reasons. Stupid maples and oaks and beeches coming from my neighbors property are shading my backyard and causes such a mess with its leaves. Such an eyesore they are

Gingko is cool but its from china so no... I've narrowed it down to this: Hinoki cypress specimen or Katsura tree or a giant cryptomeria or a Japanese red pine. Now is the Japanese red pine also disease susceptible here in America?

Also, consider Stewartia pseudocamellia. It is native to Japan, I believe. I've never grown one, so don't know how fast or slow or difficult. Year-round appeal with interesting bark.

Metasequoia, at one point or other it was native here and Japan, it grows fast, lives long and you can limb it up if you like for a formal look. It does drop needles though.

Plant the Ogon cultivar. I believe the initial irradiated seeds were "made" in Japan by the New Oji Paper Company. Paper company I tell ya.

http://conifersociety.org/conifers/conifer/metasequoia/glyptostroboides/ogon/

It is as eye catching as anything I have seen and grows fast in virtually full sun herd.

I went "plant hunting" last week and got lots of metasequoia seeds.

Heruga, it seems to me that your odds of achieving a long lived tree must be greater if you choose something native to your area. These are living things, not furniture, and they don't come with guarantees. Since you don't care for native trees, were I you I would probably swing for the fences - plant what you want and enjoy for the life, whatever it may be. As others have said, if it's not very long, it's an opportunity to try again.