watering schedule and budding question

I have a question about watering and flowering my regs plant. i was told to water every 2-6 days but i have looked other places and some have said to water once everyday. can someone tell me what schedule i should put my plant on. on the other hand i have a question about budding. when the plant reaches its mature length and its time to start flowering can i cover it up with something (bc its outdoor grown) at 8pm and then uncover it so light reaches it at 8am. if that is possible can someone tell me what i can use to cover it from sunlight.

just wait until the first few inches of soil is bone dry then water, and dont cover it, it'll flower when its ready.if its a height problem just tie it down.

ok but it is already mature height. i was planning on changing up the light hours by not covering the plant but drape plastic over it so that no light can get through.

just a reminder, im growing outdoors and i cant buy a grow light system bc i live with my mom so if you have any ideas on how i can get it to bud without buying the grow lights

I let the plants tell me, don't water them for a few days once the leaves start to dip its time for some water, within a few hours of watering they will perk back up. Pretty soon you get into a groove on when its time to water. Its really hard to follow someone else's schedule because most everyone uses different soils and mixtures and or different sized planters as well as different sized plants, all of those are factors on how often someone will need to water their plant.

As for the covering up the plant outside to make it go 12/12 for flowering I guess you could try it, ya got me if that would work. I just can't help to think of the 8 week twice a day commitment that would require.

another question. my plant is tall but it has short leaves. im starting to think that my plant might be a male

you will find out soon if it is a male as soon as those lights change

ok thanks, everyone. i pretty much got all i need