Want a monarch garden at your school? Here's how

The Oklahoma City Zoo and Botanical Garden is giving metro schools the chance to build a monarch butterfly garden on campus.

Interested schools can apply for the OKC Living Classroom Grant Program now through April 18th.

The grant is in partnership with the Oklahoma Monarch and Pollinator Collaborative (Okies for Monarchs), and the National Wildlife Federation.

Schools that receive the grant will have access to the National Wildlife Federation's Monarch Mission Curriculum and up to $1500 for supplies to build the garden.

Each grants requires a 3 year commitment to maintain the garden which must be at least 100 square feet of planted space.

The habitats are made up of native plants such as milkweed and other nectar plants. These spaces are necessary for monarchs as they migrate through Oklahoma from Canada to Mexico and back.

Over the last 30 years the population has decreased by 90%, but conservationists with the OKC Zoo say increasing monarch habitats can help the species survive.

To apply, visit OKC Living Classroom Grant Program

To learn more about statewide efforts to save monarchs visit https://www.okiesformonarchs.org