We compared the radial growth trends of plantations and their responses to extreme droughts from 1980 to 2018. Growth of most plantations has significantly increased over time, but broadleaves showed recent growth reductions in the past decade, which may be related to tree age and reduced soil moisture. Broadleaves showed a better post-drought recovery, probably linked to their anisohydric behavior, than conifers, which presented a better resistance to drought. Growth of conifers depended more on warmer temperature and better precipitation conditions during the growing season, whereas broadleaves mainly reacted to warm temperature. Additionally, pre-drought growth levels weakened resilience components, while post-drought precipitation compensated drought-induced growth deficit. For more details, see "Optimistic growth of marginal region plantations under climate warming: assessing divergent drought resilience" published in Global Change Biology.