Mild stress can induce adaptational processes in plants that may improve their overall responses to environmental constraints (Turner et al., 1980). Thus, controlled preharvest stress might positively affect the postharvest behavior of products. To test this hypothesis, the effects of reduced water availability to radishes on their growth, photosynthetic activity, water relations and chemical constituents, as well as on their postharvest wilting responses, were investigated. Comprehensive studies on the relationships between preharvest conditions and postharvest behavior may provide simple solutions to the improvement of the postharvest quality of perishable vegetables such as radish.