Ante as demandas globais emergentes relacionadas à conservação da natureza e às mudanças climáticas, a cidade do Recife, capital do Estado de Pernambuco, Brasil, vem buscando estratégias para enfrentar tais problemáticas. Entre os projetos em desenvolvimento destaca-se o do Parque Capibaribe que visa promover uma nova forma de experienciar a cidade atrelada à recuperação ambiental e viabilizada pela criação e valorização dos espaços públicos, notadamente aqueles que englobam porções de natureza, e por sua conexão aos fragmentos florestais urbanos, públicos ou privados, formando uma grande rede ambiental. Contudo, um dos grandes desafios estava na seleção de espécies vegetais da Floresta Ombrófila Densa das Terras Baixas, característica do sítio, para compor a Paleta Vegetal do Projeto Parque Capibaribe, por existir uma lacuna referente ao seu emprego no paisagismo. Desta forma, objetiva-se com este artigo, apresentar e discutir o processo da seleção das espécies que compõem esta Paleta Vegetal. Por meio de pesquisa bibliográfica, sobre levantamentos florísticos e fitossociológicos de fragmentos florestais próximos ao Rio Capibaribe, chegou-se a um total de 523 espécies, que posteriormente foram submetidas a critérios relacionados ao uso dos espaços e manutenção, resultando em 194 espécies de diferentes estratos.  Understanding nature in order to design: the Vegetation Palette of the Capibaribe Park Landscape ProjectA B S T R A C TIn the face of emerging global demands concerning nature conservation and climate change, Recife, capital of the State of Pernambuco, Brazil, has been seeking strategies to address these issues. Among the projects under development, the Capibaribe Park Project, which aims to promote a new way of experiencing the city in conjunction with environmental recovery, stands out for its creation and enhancement of public spaces, notably those that include pockets of nature, and their connection to fragments of public or private urban forest, forming a large environmental network. However, one of the major challenges has been the selection of plant species from the Dense Ombrophilous Lowland Forest, characteristic of the locality, to compose the Capibaribe Park Vegetation Palette, since there is a knowledge gap regarding their use in landscaping. The aim of this article is thus to describe the methodological process of selecting the species that make up this vegetation palette, which, through bibliographic research on floristic and phytosociological surveys of forest fragments near the Capibaribe River, reached a total of 523 species. From these, 194 species from different strata were subsequently selected according to space use and maintenance criteria.Keywords: Environmental Recovery, Urban Parks, Urban Sustainability, Landscape, Vegetation.

This article discusses the issue of heritage management of Atlantic Forest fragments in Brazil, especially in the city of Recife. As ecosystems in urban territory, established as Protected Units, the forest remnants are carriers of socio-cultural meanings, recognized by the natural and cultural values they evoke. The empirical object investigated is the Nature Conservation Unit Mata de Dois Irmãos, which was analyzed as a heritage asset focusing not only on natural processes, but especially on human processes apprehended from the interrelationship established with the site, directly or indirectly. The observation was mediated by semi-structured interviews, listening to local agents (residents), as well as specialists and public managers who are somehow involved with this heritage site. From the analysis, it was possible to apprehend representations that translate the values that are attributed to the ecosystem in question. The results obtained showed the essence contained in the intertwining between the natural and cultural dimensions, interpreted from the expressions and attitudes exposed by those who interact with the urban environment in which it is inserted and with which it relates, which gives relevance to the sociocultural dimension in the existence and permanence of ecosystems, and should be taken into account in the operational process of conservation management of the natural heritage in the city.