I find that my red worms who live outside do really well, so long as the soil is kept moist and they are fed often with vegetable/fruit trimmings. I often will add some partially composted leaves from my compost bin. Although, I find that they do well without much attention in my raised beds that have lots of organic compost, I like to keep one 4ft square bed that is shaded and kept covered with cardboard to add my veggie/fruit trimmings/composted leaves. I go clockwise around the bed to add food and to remove the vermicompost as needed to use in my containers/other beds. There are so many worms in the bed that is necessary to spread the vermicompost out to let it dry out and get the worms to move back to a moister section. Try to use unchlorinated water to moisten the rest of the bed or some that has sat out for 24hrs so that the chlorine has mostly evaporated. Red worms will eat the bacteria from the decaying foods, and I never have a problem with offensive odors ....actually, the compost in this bed smells really good and the plants seem to really thrive on it. I agree that getting these worms from someone in your area may be better as they will have adapted to your local weather conditions. I live in a desert area that has temps from the 20's to the 110's and they have survived many years outside this way.

Both are great additions but pound for pound, worm castings are superior. They are considered the Cadillac of composts - relatively high nutrient content, very high populations of beneficial microorganisms, a good source of humic acid and they contain beneficial plant growth hormones (auxins). They enhance seed germination. They also absorb 3-4 times their weight in moisture, contibuting significantly to soil moisture retention and they are heavily populated with both nitrogen fixing and anti-pathogenic bacteria. Although Al makes some very valid points, worms tend not to make great pets :-) I wouldn't trade my bunnies for worms but I would consider both. Since I have a source for as many worm castings as I can use, I opt to keep my bunnies both for their appeal and their poop output.

I can only speak from my experience but in the time Ive had a worm bin I havent harvested the castings, I leave them in the bin and only take some out as I need them so there's always been a high percentage of castings in there. Ive never noticed any problems, the worms are happy and healthy and seem to like it down in the castings where it's always nice and moist If the worms were unhappy or trying to leave then I would suspect a problem but it's never happened

You can brew worm tea but I have found a better method. It takes months to make worm castings. I have 5 worm bins made from Kitty litter buckets and 2 inside bins (rubbermaid containers). I have a lot of potted plants and hated tossing the spent potting soil (expensive) into the garden. I have 2 compost tumblers and when the exothermic reaction is done I add worms to speed up the process. All bins are raised and have collecting trays. The drippage is the best worm tea. I collect it daily using a turkey baster,bulb syringe, or toomey syringe if you have one. You can collect the tea long before the castings and pour it on your potted plants. I have a 5 foot cilantro that really loved it and have brought back many nutrient deficient plants. Recycling potting soil in worm bins really works too and the worms love them.