Shook swarm is a technique used to transfer a colony of bees onto fresh foundation, often addressing issues like old comb, or at the suggestion and guidance of your seasonal bee inspector who will in certain cases suggest the shook swarm to help with a suspected disease. It's a significant intervention, so it's important to understand the process thoroughly. Here's a breakdown based on reliable sources like the National Bee Unit and the BBKA...

Purpose of a Shook Swarm:
• Comb Replacement: To replace old, potentially contaminated comb with new foundation.
• Disease Control: Particularly useful in managing certain brood diseases under the guidance of a bee inspector.
• Varroa Reduction: Can temporarily disrupt the Varroa mite's brood cycle.

Time of day:
• Mid-afternoon when most of the bees should be flying.

Key Materials:
• Clean hive equipment depending on the purpose of the shook swarm, It may be done with just a spare brood box with frames and foundation,
  but for disease control it would be a complete hive. (A floor, brood box, frames with foundation, crown board & a roof)
• Queen excluder.
• Feeder and sugar syrup.
• Plastic sacks for old combs and frames.

Steps Involved:

1. Prepare the New Hive:
    o Place a clean hive floor on the original hive's location.
    o Place a queen excluder on the floor to prevent the queen from taking flight.
    o Add a clean brood box with frames of new foundation on top of the queen excluder.
    o Use a foam strip to reduce the entrance down to 20 - 25mm this will help bees defend the hive and concentrate them on the inside.
    o Temporarily remove five of the centre frames.

2. Transfer the Bees:
    o Carefully open the original hive.
    o Locate the queen and cage her and keep her somewhere safe.
    o Remove frames from the old hive one by one, and shake the bees off into the new brood box.
    o Brush off any remaining bees.
    o Place the old combs into the black sack.
    o Take the brood box, hold it by its side and shake or brush any remaining bees into the new box.
    o Replace the temporarily removed frames with new frames.
    o Release the queen between two of the middle frames, watch to see her go down.

3. Complete the Setup:
    o Add a Protein Patty to one side of the feeder hole on the top of the frames.
    o Place the crown board on and add a large feeder, filled with syrup.
    o Roof on the new hive.

Important Considerations:

• Timing:
    o Ideally done in early spring or early summer, when the colony is strong.
    o For disease control, follow the bee inspector's instructions.

• Colony:
    o Best performed on strong colonies.
    o Not recommended for weak colonies.

• Disease Precautions:
    o Dispose of old combs properly (burning is often recommended).
    o Clean hive equipment, bleach and soda are effective.
    o Scorch all metal and wooden parts.

• Post-Shook Swarm Care:
    o Monitor the colony's progress.
    o Ensure they have adequate food stores.
    o Check for queen activity and brood production.
    o Follow-up brood checks are very important, especially when done due to disease.

Where to Find Detailed Information:
• National Bee Unit and BBKA - Their fact sheets provide comprehensive guidance.

By following these steps and taking necessary precautions, you can perform a shook swarm effectively.