Questions.

Working on my 1st grow, Its a DWC 5 gallon bucket. Curious how to tell when the plants are ready to be moved into flowering.

its up to you really,some people flower from seed..in your case id go as big as possible first....since one plant and all...to get more yield

you can keep the plants in vegetative state for as long as you want, you should start inducing flowering after 2 months. But you can really flower any time you want, some people flower straight from seed.

2 weeks is a minimum, they will veg for 2 weeks whether under 12/12 or not. 3 or 4 weeks are most common. I do 3.

You also have to ask, "weeks from what?" Some measure from seed, some from germinated seed and some from sprout. It can be a week from seed to sprout so it matters. Best to take a shot, keep records and develop your own preference over time.