sculpted cob oven lime plaster finish

So I've got my oven mostly completed, just adding a few finishing touches (like adding some slip to the inside of the chimney and details on the sculpture) I'd like to not have to build a permanent structure over the top. Ive been looking at lime plaster; but one of the questions I have been wondering about is with a final layer of lime plaster(i have a bag of masons hydrated lime), from what I have been reading it needs to have a chance to cure with some residual moisture. How long will that process process take? Im in Northern California and its getting hot! I don't want to prolong my wait to fire up the oven any longer than necessary (i want some pizza, dammit!) Any tips or direction to resources would be much appreciated!

Big Welcome to Permies Brett!

First off, that is a very impressive piece of functional artwork you've built!
Not having very much experience with lime plaster, I don't want to steer you in the wrong direction, but I do know that its often a good idea to light up your stove several times until the cob completely dries (and make pizza at the same time of course!). What this does is it will cause any cracks (if any) to form, then you can patch them before the final coat which will cover up all the imperfections made by the repairs.
Not a foolproof method, but certainly one that has worked for me.

Keep us posted, we like pictures!

Hi Brett, amazing work! Here's a good resource for cob/lime plaster.
https://limes.us/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/plaster-cob.pdf

Thanks Chris, that's just the kind of resource I've been looking for! Will keep posting pics as i progess. Ive fired it a couple of times and it seems pretty solid so far(couple of cracks on the inside but doesn't seem too deep or worrying)