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This is the first plant functional trait database for Nova Scotia, Canada. The data contained here were collected between 2016 and 2019 from locations around Halifax, Nova Scotia. The species selected for trait collection were chosen based on species inventories taken across Nova Scotian coastal barrens and from green roofs at Saint Mary's University. The purpose of the coastal barren trait data was to understand community assembly in this understudied ecosystem. The green roof inventory was included as coastal barren species are known to succeed on green roofs in Nova Scotia. The green roof trait data was used to answer questions surrounding coexistence and trait divergence, and community assembly and spatial heterogeneity. In total, this database contains 14,341 trait values from 203 species comprising 130 genera and 53 families. The majority of species are commonly found on coastal barrens (84 …