Another phase of Birket Foster's art was his love for painting fruit and flowers. He was greatly attracted by William Hunt's work. As may be expected, the same stippling in paintings by Hunt appears in works of Foster; but whilst the former nearly always painted his fruit pieces the same size as in Nature, the latter produced almost miniature representations of them.
In 1893 Birket Foster was attacked by a serious illness, and yielding to the pressure of medical advice, he was obliged to abandon much of his work and reluctantly to give up "The Hill." He removed to "Braeside," Weybridge, and here he resided quietly, devoting himself to his painting as much as possible, until his death, which occurred six years later. He was buried in Witley churchyard; a Celtic cross, with the simple inscription, "In memory of Birket Foster. Born Feb. 4th, 1825. Died March 27th, 1899," marks the spot where lie the remains of this great water-colour artist, who painted English landscape with such a pure feeling and high perception of the beauty of Nature.
Birket Foster was twice married—firstly, in 1850, to his cousin, Ann Spence, by whom he had five children, three sons and two daughters; and secondly, in 1864, to Frances Watson, a sister to John Dawson Watson, the well-known painter and member of the Old Water-Colour Society.
