combustion of straw bale gardening

Can the bales catch on fire?? I have built compost piles that have gotten too hot and began to burn ~ should I worry about this and is there any way to prevent this. I live in the city now and do not want to do anything too risky.

Doug says here's the article on how to grow with straw bales As you can see, when they're only one deep - in a row - there's no issue after a few days. If you make a pile of them - wide and high - then they can develop combustion temperatures but for a garden situation - the answer is no, you won't have an issue if you wait as in the article directions.