for some reason this year I am  having a time with yellow Jackets.  The figs are beginning to ripen but 2 out of every 3 that do are hollowed out with 4 or 5 yellow jackets eating them out.  Any idea what to do? (id rather not use insecticide if possible)

I had problem with them doing this several years back.
For me i had a large pussywillow tree they like and that year were eating a lot of my figs.
What i did one day when there were literally hundreds on my trees feasting away was i used the garden hose and ran then came back with more water srpay and stomped on them when they fell to the patio, they still got the best of my figs for a day or too.
I hung a few wasp traps in several trees and did not have a problem anymore that season as figs were in there best ripeing mode.
The tree had to be cut down cause of winter storm last year, this year no problem as tree is gone and so are the wasp traps.
The traps worked well for me but since the tree is gone so are the wasp except for an occasional one.

Hi aaron8888

The figs must have a very big eye the yellow jackets to be able to go in for a meal?

are you having that trouble with all your figs, or just that Fig?

I only have a Celeste that has been giving me figs,and we have wasp's, of all kinds and the darn yellow jackets also.I haven't had that problem.........YET :)

actualy they are not going in thrue the eye they are just chewing the side off and eating out from the side.  I think its a turkey fig.  the figs are about the size of a quarter when ripe and are a burgandy brown color.

In Tucson, we have problems with Africanized bees swarming where they aren't wanted, but they can be killed quite effectively with a non-toxic solution of water and dishsoap. I suspect the same solution would work on yellowjackets. A gallon of water to a teaspoon of soap will do the trick, but you have to spray it directly on the bug, and pretty-well soak it. The soap breaks the surface tension of the water, so it runs inside the insect's breathing holes and drowns it--quite quickly. A hudson pump-up sprayer makes a good weapon!

Of course, this won't prevent new ones from coming to the tree, so if there are lots of them, it may not do much good. I've started protcting some figs (on an experimental basis) with "sleeves" of mosquito netting-type fabric (see photo in the post titled "eye opening experience???"). That would work as well, but may be more work than it's worth!

If you have somewhere to hang this type worked well for me back when i had problems .
Use plastic milk jug and keep the cap.

Duck tape about bottom 1/3 of jug 

Cut horizontal slot several inches long on
2 sides of jug thru duck tape around the middle part.

At the corners of each slot cut downwards just a bit maybe 1/4 inch
Bend them inwards, the wasp can crawl into real tiny spaces.

Smear some jam around slots a lot is not needed.

Fill with dark soda and a little dish soap below the slots of course!!!

Cap it you can poke with coat hanger for your fastener to hang.

Wasp enters slots either fly upwards toward light if there smart and get tired fall and drown, or the agressive ones go thru slot into total darkness and into solution and drown, they will have difficult time flying as the dish soap renders there wings pretty useless once they fall into the stuff.

The 2 sides you did not cut makes it easy to tilt and empty so you do not spill that yucky stuff on you like i did!