Water availability and continuous pollen feeding were found essential for good survival,and adequate cotton pollen transfer when a honey bee colony (Apis mellifera L.) was placed inside a screen cage to pollionate male-sterile (MS) cotton (Gossypium Hirsutum L.). With inadequate pollen feeding, the foragers rapidly start to strip the pollen off the male-fertile (MF) flowers, resulting in poor pollen transfer. An alternate design was tested at two locations in Lubbock Co., Texas, in 1984. A normal size honey bee colony was placed outside the cage in a double-entrance hive such that one entrance was directed to the inside of the cage and the other was opposite and opened to the outside. This scheme was found to (1) eliminate all needs for pollen feeding and water inside the cage for adequate maintenance and development of the colony, (2) permit the closing of the inside entrance for unlimited period of times to control pests inside the cage, and (3) leave many foragers available for potentially foraging on and pollinating nearby crops. Based on five tagging dates at one location, the MS flowers set an average of 31% bolls while, with the honey bee colony kept inside the cage, the set was 30%. The colony inside the cage set an earlier crop than the one with the double-entrance, but overall 90% as much seed cotton (353.5 vs 390.9 g/10 m-row) was harvested with the double-entrance set up as compared to the cage with the hive within fed pollen continuously. Marker lines were used at each location (okra-leaf or glandless), and preliminary results indicate that this technique may not lead to significant contamination.