Rockm, think I will move our discussion of live oaks and native trees over here. 175 pounds or that tree - amazing, I am 51 and am sure I would have to have some help with that. I haven't read up on the trees native to the South, but from what it sounds like there might not be written about them. Don't know how you'd Bonsai one, but one of my favorite trees is a White oak, Q. alba pagodafolia, a magnificent tree. The live oak I thought you were talking about and that I was referring to is the White Oak common on the coastal plain on down to the gulf, the Q. Virginiana. It's just one of the trees I love to look at in the wild.
I saw in one guys collection that he'd posted on here a Virginia pine and he had done a pretty good job of it , too. I raised pine (mostly) on my plantation back over in Alabama and can get any amount of bare root loblolly and containerized long leaf. Love the long leaf species, but they stay in the grass stage for 2-5 years, then on to the candle stage and are pretty tall and fat (and soft) by then. Interesting to think about and I appreciate your time, interest and thoughts on this.
I have no pine species for bonsai, but raise 5000 acres of them to grow tall, straight and fast. Going to look into Loblolly pine as bonsai. If Virginia pine can do it, then Lob. should too. Let you know what I find out. Thanks, Phillip C